meatball

[ meet-bawl ]

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.

meatball

/ ˈmiːtˌbɔːl /

noun

1. minced beef, shaped into a ball before cooking
2. slang.
   a stupid or boring person

Word History and Origins

Origin of meatball¹

First recorded in 1830–40; meat + ball ¹

Example Sentences

I remember helping shape the meatballs, tucking the squishy meat into my cupped palms.

From Washington Post

There would always be sausage in the soup, too, but I’d count the tiny meatballs in each bowl, pick around the greens and ask for extra cheese to sprinkle on top.

From Washington Post

Increase the heat to high and cook until the greens soften and the meatballs are cooked through — cut into one to be sure it’s no longer pink in the center — about 3 minutes.

From Washington Post

A fellow Vox Media colleague had raved about the chicken meatball recipe from Bon Appetit over the summer, so I decided to try it out.

From Eater

Winslow says if your meatball or meatloaf recipe first calls for cooking down onions, consider instead working raw scallions into the ground meat for a brighter taste.

From Washington Post

The actor even had a custom-made tuxedo created so Meatball could participate in his wedding ceremony.

From The Daily Beast

When asked later in an interview with Wendy Williams how the night went, Vinny responded, “Um… you ever have sex with a meatball?”

From The Daily Beast

As is customary when entering the shore house, the spicy meatball drank way too much and ended up in a bad situation.

From The Daily Beast

Example: "She looked exactly like Snooki—like 4-feet tall, short little meatball, exactly like Snooki."

From The Daily Beast

Daniel Holzman Daniel Holzman is the Chef/Owner of The Meatball Shop in New York City.

From The Daily Beast