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Synonyms

drop the ball

Idioms  

  1. Make an error; miss an opportunity. For example, She really dropped the ball when she forgot to call back, or He dropped the ball, turning down their offer. This expression comes from sports where a player who fails to catch a ball is charged with an error. Its use for more general kinds of mistakes dates from about 1950.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"It cannot drop the ball and allow the collapse of Northern Ireland's strategic and world-class aerospace sector."

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2025

Like, when you’re being aggressive, you’re driving to the basket, you drop the ball off and they steal it.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 25, 2024

But if he receives a second chance at a game-changing pick-six, don’t expect him to drop the ball.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 15, 2023

"Governments cannot drop the ball," Van Kerkhove said, adding that the coronavirus continues to circulate, evolve, infect and kill people.

From Reuters • Aug. 24, 2023

I wasn’t going to drop the ball on any of it.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.