ballpoint pen

[bawl-point pen]

noun

1. a pen in which the point is a fine ball bearing that rotates against a supply of semisolid ink in a cartridge, thus rolling the ink onto paper.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ballpoint pen¹

First recorded in 1945–50; ball ¹ + point

Example Sentences

He took a year out to apply to study law, during which he worked as a dustman, on a kibbutz and as a ballpoint pen salesman in South Africa.

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He called her every day and kept a diary, sketching rap lyrics and poems in blue ballpoint pen.

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Dahl, who was born in the Cardiff suburb of Llandaff, produced the sketches in black ballpoint pen for the book Boy, which was published in 1984.

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Mitchell has been drawing for as long as he can remember, but it was a high school classmate pointing out the permanent nature of a ballpoint pen that led to his aha moment.

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Following a scoreless draw against the LA Galaxy at Lumen Field Sunday, the longtime Sounders coach compulsively clicked a ballpoint pen and lamented his team’s lack of belief.

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