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passed ball

American  
[past bawl] / ˈpæst ˌbɔl /

noun

Baseball.
  1. a pitched ball that the catcher can reasonably be expected to catch but misses, allowing one or more base runners to advance one or more bases.


Etymology

Origin of passed ball

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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Second inning, Blake Snell gives up a one-out single to Spencer Horowitz, who advances to second on a passed ball, but Snell strands him with a strikeout of Billy Cook.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 24, 2026

Santa Barbara won on a passed ball in the eighth.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 17, 2025

Arizona scored twice off reliever Ryan Yarbrough in the eighth when Marte led off with a homer off the left-field foul pole and Walker doubled and later scored on a passed ball.

From Los Angeles Times May 23, 2024

After Brenton Doyle’s RBI single, Ezequiel Tovar scored on a passed ball to tie it, and with two outs, Elias Díaz delivered a go-ahead double that sent Colorado to a 10-9 win.

From Seattle Times Apr. 29, 2024

The runner always takes considerable ground in order to score on a slow hit to the in-field, or on a short passed ball.

From Base-Ball How to Become a Player by John M. Ward

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