balls

British  

/ bɔːlz /

plural noun

1. the testicles

2. so as to be rendered powerless

3. nonsense; rubbish

4. courage; forcefulness

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interjection

1. an exclamation of strong disagreement, contempt, annoyance, etc

Usage

Both its anatomical senses and its various extended senses nowadays have far less impact than they used to, and seem unlikely to cause offence, though some older or more conservative people may object. Interestingly, its use in the sense of courage is exactly paralleled in the Spanish term «cojones»

Example Sentences

Petroleum is used to make thousands of products, from golf balls to children’s toys and shampoo.

From The Wall Street Journal

The author has thrown up too many balls to catch.

From The Wall Street Journal

This war continues to throw him curve balls, which the administration does not appear to have anticipated.

From BBC

When Karli told her he was good at juggling one day, she gave him two tennis balls—if he was happy, it would help him to get better, she said.

From Literature

"I prepare harder than probably any other player and I work harder. I think people just assume I only need to get out of bed and pot balls. That isn't the case."

From BBC

Related Words

• arrogance
• audacity
• boldness
• gall