stickball

American  

[stik-bawl] / ˈstɪkˌbɔl /

noun

1. a form of baseball played in the streets, on playgrounds, etc., in which a rubber ball and a broomstick or the like are used in place of a baseball and bat.

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Other Word Forms

• stickballer noun

Etymology

Origin of stickball

An Americanism dating back to 1815–25; (broom)stick + ball ¹

Example Sentences

Growing up in the Bensonhurst section, he started piano lessons at 8 but quit because he preferred playing stickball outdoors with his friends.

From New York Times • Dec. 12, 2022

He is a middle-schooler who invites his buddies over to play stickball, and when a window breaks he immediately points at everyone else.

From Washington Post • Oct. 6, 2022

The red-haired boy spent summer days playing stickball in the streets and collecting empty soda bottles, returning them for refunds so he could buy a 55-cent ticket to the Polo Grounds.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 2, 2022

New York’s streets — once places where kids played stickball — were turned over nearly completely to vehicles in the automobile age, except for the occasional summer street fair.

From Seattle Times • May 1, 2022

Sometimes she would yell out for her son to get her some medicine, and young Morrie, playing stickball in the street, would pretend he did not hear her.

From "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom