cannonball

[kan-uhn-bawl]

noun

1. a missile, usually round and made of iron or steel, designed to be fired from a cannon.

2. Tennis.,  a served ball that travels with great speed and describes little or no arc in flight.

3. anything that moves with great speed, as an express train.

adjective

1. made from a curled-up position with the arms pressing the knees against one's chest.

   a cannonball dive.

2. moving at great speed.

   a train known as a cannonball express.

cannonball

/ ˈkænənˌbɔːl /

noun

1. a projectile fired from a cannon: usually a solid round metal shot

2. tennis

   1. a very fast low serve

   2. ( as modifier )

      a cannonball serve

3. a jump into water by a person who has his arms tucked into the body to form a ball

verb

1. to rush along, like a cannonball

2. to execute a cannonball jump

adjective

1. very fast or powerful

Word History and Origins

Origin of cannonball¹

First recorded in 1655–65; cannon + ball ¹

Example Sentences

It’s not a trust fall so much as a trust cannonball.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Instead of casually wading into the shallow end, skimming the surface with tepid bits of history about Mansfield’s life and career, Hargitay opts for a cannonball.

Read more on Salon

Valencia says on his website he has more than two decades of experience as a human cannonball.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Last week Collins had talked about a funny memory with the Wolverines, how Harbaugh finished a spring practice by doing a cannonball off the high dive at the school’s pool.

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Here they tautologically come, slowly walking down the hall, faster than a cannonball.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• ammo 
• armament 
• bomb 
• bullet 
• cartridge 
• chemical 
• explosive 
• gunpowder 
• materiel 
• missile 
• munition 
• napalm 
• rocket 
• shrapnel 
• torpedo