meatball

American  

[meet-bawl] / ˈmitˌbɔl /

noun

1. Cooking. a small ball of ground meat, especially beef, often mixed with breadcrumbs, seasonings, etc., before cooking.

2. Slang. an awkward, clumsy, or ineffectual person.

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meatball British  

/ ˈmiːtˌbɔːl /

noun

1. minced beef, shaped into a ball before cooking

2. slang a stupid or boring person

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Etymology

Origin of meatball

First recorded in 1830–40; meat + ball ¹

Explanation

Those delicious, savory spheres on your spaghetti? They're meatballs, nuggets of ground meat, spices, and bread crumbs. If you take ground beef, mix in ingredients like torn bread, eggs, and seasoning, and shape it into individual balls, you've got meatballs. They can be fried, simmered, or baked, and you can use whatever tastes good and sticks together to make them. Ancient Chinese and Roman cuisines both included variations on the meatball, so we've been eating these for centuries. And if you know someone who's nice enough but not very smart, you might call them a meatball.

Example Sentences

When the bill was first presented earlier this year, one group called it a "poisoned meatball".

From BBC • Nov. 25, 2025

For him that means a tightly edited menu of classics like pepperoni, meatball and a white pie with mushrooms.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 8, 2025

The experience is pure Midwest and that includes the paired appetizers: a meatball slider, multiple mac and cheese dishes, pulled pork sliders and other hearty, stick-to-your-ribs fare.

From Salon • Mar. 30, 2025

But it’s rare to meet a meatball — from the allspice-tinged Swedish variety to sticky/sweet barbecued ones — that I don’t love.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 13, 2023

Fred had a lump in his throat the size of a meatball.

From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein