baseball

American  

[beys-bawl] / ˈbeɪsˌbɔl /

noun

1. a game of ball between two nine-player teams played usually for nine innings on a field that has as a focal point a diamond-shaped infield with a home plate and three other bases, 90 feet (27 meters) apart, forming a circuit that must be completed by a base runner in order to score, the central offensive action entailing hitting of a pitched ball with a wooden or metal bat and running of the bases, the winner being the team scoring the most runs.

2. the ball used in this game, being a sphere approximately 3 inches (7 centimeters) in diameter with a twine-covered center of cork covered by stitched horsehide.

3. Cards. a variety of five-card or seven-card stud poker in which nines and threes are wild and in which threes and fours dealt face up gain the player either penalties or privileges.

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baseball British  

/ ˈbeɪsˌbɔːl /

noun

1. a team game with nine players on each side, played on a field with four bases connected to form a diamond. The object is to score runs by batting the ball and running round the bases

2. the hard rawhide-covered ball used in this game

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Other Word Forms

• probaseball adjective

Etymology

Origin of baseball

First recorded in 1795–1805; base ¹ + ball ¹

Example Sentences

Terrance Gore, a baseball player whose remarkable speed earned him spots on three championship teams, including the 2020 Dodgers, died Friday, the Kansas City Royals announced on social media.

From Los Angeles Times

Just to let Dave Roberts know, there is something bigger than baseball.

From Los Angeles Times

But the changes Karp enacted have rippled across the industry as firms have grown and teams of lawyers now routinely defect to competing firms like baseball free agents.

From The Wall Street Journal

Hockey is all action; baseball is the opposite.

From The Wall Street Journal

My seat at the bar had a view of the water, the Olympic Mountains and the Mariners baseball game.

From The Wall Street Journal