lowball

American  

[loh-bawl] / ˈloʊˌbɔl /

noun

1. Cards. a game of draw poker in which the player having the lowest-ranking hand wins the pot.

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verb (used with object)

1. to deliberately estimate a lower price for (a service or merchandise) than one intends to charge.

   to lowball the cost of a move.

2. to give a false estimate or bid for.

verb (used without object)

1. to engage in lowballing.

adjective

1. engaged in or characteristic of lowballing.

   a lowball bid.

lowball British  

/ ˈləʊˌbɔːl /

noun

1. a game of poker in which the player with the lowest hand wins

2. 1. a very low estimate or offer

   2. ( as modifier )

      a lowball bid

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verb

1. (tr) to make a very low estimate or offer for (a service, product, company, etc)

Etymology

Origin of lowball

low ¹ + ball ¹

Explanation

When you lowball someone, you attempt to buy something from them by offering a lot less money than it's actually worth. If you want to buy a car that you can't quite afford, you might decide to lowball. Whether you estimate something's value, make an offer to buy something, or try to hire a worker for a very small salary, you lowball. The word works as an adjective too: "He was selling fancy lemonade for two dollars a cup, but I made him a lowball offer, since I only had a quarter in my pocket." This informal slang word was coined in the US, from a railroad term.

Example Sentences

If Facebook bought DeepMind, it would lowball the price it paid for DeepMind shares, but then fork over a vast signing bonus to the founders and their top colleagues.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

But even those lowball official projections may not be low enough, writes Stephen Brown, deputy chief North America economist at Capital Economics.

From Barron's • Jan. 29, 2026

So when applicants lowball, they may end up pricing themselves well below what the company actually budgeted to pay.

From Slate • Jan. 20, 2026

Fire victims say they have experienced slow responses from insurance company claims handlers, been rotated to multiple adjusters, denied hygienic testing for toxic chemicals and been given lowball offers.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 18, 2025

O’Brien even lobbed a few lowball jokes about AI and Amazon into the crowd, but nothing that left the audience doubled over in laughter.

From Salon • Mar. 3, 2025