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left field

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noun
  1. Baseball.
    1. the area of the outfield to the left of center field, as viewed from home plate.
    2. the position of the player covering this area.
  2. Slang. a position or circumstance that is remote from an ordinary or general trend.
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Idioms
  1. out in left field, Slang. completely mistaken; wrong.
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Origin of left field

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

incorrecttastelessunsuitableunseemlyimproperwrongirrelevantdisproportionategarbageill-suitedill-timedinapplicableincongruousindecorousineptmalaproposoffunbecomingundueunfit

Examples from the Web for left-field

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • He was naturally a left-field hitter and, therefore, swung late at the ball.

    Pitching in a Pinch

    Christy Mathewson

  • Chub started him at left-field and kept him there until he had learned to judge a ball, catch it and field it home.

    The Crimson Sweater

    Ralph Henry Barbour

  • Considered simply as a fielder, the occupant of the left-field should have a good "eye" to "judge" a ball hit in the air.

    Base-Ball

    John M. Ward

  • King, who had been playing in left-field, went into the pitchers box, and Jack was sent out to left-field.

    Weatherby's Inning

    Ralph Henry Barbour

  • Joe Perkins was back behind the plate and Gilberth went into left-field, King occupying the box.

    Weatherby's Inning

    Ralph Henry Barbour

British Dictionary definitions for left-field

left-field

adjective
  1. informal regarded as being outside the mainstream; unconventional
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Word Origin

C20: from baseball term left field, the area of the outfield to the batter's left, regarded as the scene of little action
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with left-field

left field

see out in left field.

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