play ball
Idioms-
Cooperate, as in The opposing attorneys refused to play ball with us . [ Slang ; c. 1900]
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Get going, start, as in It's time to get a move on; let's play ball . This usage comes from the baseball umpire's call to start a game. [ Slang ; late 1800s]
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.
Yet many African nations were willing to play ball with the US tightening visas worldwide, the two ex-State Department officials said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
Still, with more American buyers demanding this type of transparency, Chinese trading companies have to play ball or risk losing business, lawyers say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 28, 2026
Those advising him warned him to play ball.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2025
"But there is also something else, something more practical which is that we simply cannot solve a challenge like stopping the boats by acting alone and telling our allies that we won't play ball."
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2025
He was tall enough to play ball, so I always assumed that's what he did.
From "Ghost" by Jason Reynolds
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
