foul tip

American

noun

Baseball.

a pitched ball that glances off the bat into foul territory, usually near the catcher, ruled a strike if the catcher catches it before it hits the ground, otherwise ruled an ordinary foul ball.

Etymology

Origin of foul tip

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70

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.

See Examples For:

foul tip

After Rushing struck out on a foul tip, the Rockies intentionally walked Shohei Ohtani.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026

Appropriately, he was the final out of the game, swinging wildly at an Alex Vesia fastball for a strikeout on a foul tip that left the former Dodger one for 12 for the weekend.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2025

Michael Busch scored from second base on what Heim thought was a foul tip, and he didn’t immediately retrieve the ball.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 28, 2024

In the eighth inning, while catching Matt Brash, Raleigh took a foul tip off his right ankle that had him face down on the ground in agony.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 13, 2023

Kipper whiffed three times without making as 313 much as a foul tip.

From Lefty Locke Pitcher-Manager by Standish, Burt L.

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