home plate

American  

noun

Baseball.

1. the base at which the batter stands and which a base runner must reach safely in order to score a run, typically a five-sided slab of whitened rubber set at ground level at the front corner of the diamond.

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home plate British  

noun

1. Also called: plate.   home.   home base.  baseball a flat often five-sided piece of hard rubber or other material that serves to define the area over which the pitcher must throw the ball for a strike and that a base runner must safely reach on his way from third base to score a run

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Etymology

Origin of home plate

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

Example Sentences

In the bottom of the ninth in Game 7, playing second base with the infield in, Rojas cleanly fielded a grounder and threw out Isiah Kiner-Falefa by inches at home plate to save the game.

From Los Angeles Times

Rojas saved the day for a second time on a ground ball at second base, fielding it from a drawn-in position before firing for a force-out at home plate.

From Los Angeles Times

Most of the Dodgers rushed to home plate to wait for Freddie Freeman, who was rounding the bases after hitting another World Series walk-off home run.

From Los Angeles Times

He might not get another pitch in the same ZIP Code as home plate.

From The Wall Street Journal

Sheen told the man to start the race at second base while Todd started at home plate.

From Los Angeles Times