foul ball
Americannoun
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a batted ground ball that is hit and played outside the foul lines, or that passes outside the foul lines at first or third base, or that is played outside the foul line between home and first or third base regardless of where hit.
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a batted fly ball played or landing outside the foul lines.
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Slang. an incompetent, unlucky, or eccentric person.
Etymology
Origin of foul ball
An Americanism dating back to 1855–60
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.
The group of departees includes Bucknor, who has been sidelined since he was struck in the face mask by a foul ball on April 1.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Bucknor’s difficult week continued on Wednesday when he left a game between the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers after a foul ball hit him flush in the face mask.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 1, 2026
It’s the roaring opposite of lazy foul ball spring training.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026
It’s gotten so bad that when we see an adult do the right thing and fork a foul ball over to a child, we’re practically nominating them for a Nobel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2025
And you pitched it, and I missed it by a mile, and you kept pitching it to me all day long, and I never even hit a foul ball on it.”
From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli
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.
