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ball up

 - 9 dictionary results

ball

1  [bawl]
Use ball up in a Sentence
–noun
1. a spherical or approximately spherical body or shape; sphere: He rolled the piece of paper into a ball.
2. a round or roundish body, of various sizes and materials, either hollow or solid, for use in games, as baseball, football, tennis, or golf.
3. a game played with a ball, esp. baseball: The boys are out playing ball.
4. Baseball. a pitched ball, not swung at by the batter, that does not pass over home plate between the batter's shoulders and knees.
5. Military.
a. a solid, usually spherical projectile for a cannon, rifle, pistol, etc., as distinguished from a shell.
b. projectiles, esp. bullets, collectively.
6. any part of a thing, esp. of the human body, that is rounded or protuberant: the ball of the thumb.
7. a round mass of food, as of chopped meat, dough, or candy.
8. Slang: Vulgar. a testis.
9. balls, Slang: Vulgar.
a. boldness; courage; brashness.
b. nonsense (often used as an interjection).
10. bolus (def. 1).
11. Horticulture. a compact mass of soil covering the roots of an uprooted tree or other plant.
12. Literary. a planetary or celestial body, esp. the earth.
13. Mathematics. (in a metric space) the set of points whose distance from the zero element is less than, or less than or equal to, a specified number.
–verb (used with object)
14. to make into a ball (sometimes fol. by up): The children were balling up snow to make a snowman.
15. to wind into balls: to ball cotton.
16. Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse with.
–verb (used without object)
17. to form or gather into a ball: When the spun sugar balls, the candy has cooked sufficiently.
18. Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse.
—Verb phrase
19. ball up, Slang. to make or become utterly confused; muddle: The records had been all balled up by inefficient file clerks.
—Idioms
20. ball the jack, Slang.
a. to act with speed.
b. to stake everything on one attempt.
21. carry the ball, to assume the responsibility; bear the burden: You can always count on him to carry the ball in an emergency.
22. drop the ball, to make a mistake or miss an opportunity at a critical moment.
23. keep the ball rolling, to continue or give renewed vigor to an activity already under way: When their interest lagged, he tried to keep the ball rolling.
24. on the ball,
a. alert and efficient or effective: If you don't get on the ball, you'll be fired.
b. indicating intelligence or ability: The tests show your students don't have much on the ball. The new manager has a lot on the ball.
25. play ball,
a. to begin or continue playing a game.
b. to start or continue any action.
c. to work together; cooperate: union leaders suspected of playing ball with racketeers.
26. run with the ball, to assume responsibility or work enthusiastically: If management approves the concept, we'll run with the ball.
27. start the ball rolling, to put into operation; begin: The recreation director started the ball rolling by having all the participants introduce themselves.
Origin:
1175–1225; ME bal, balle < OF < Gmc *ballaz; cf. ON bǫllr, OHG bal, ballo, balla, G Ball, D bal; perh. akin to L follis leather bag; see ballock

Related forms:
baller, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To ball up
ball 1   (bôl)   
n.  

    1. A spherical object or entity: a steel ball.

    2. A spherical or almost spherical body: a ball of flame.

    3. Any of various rounded, movable objects used in various athletic activities and games.

    4. Such an object moving, thrown, hit, or kicked in a particular manner: a low ball; a fair ball.

    5. A game, especially baseball or basketball, played with such an object.

    6. A pitched baseball that does not pass through the strike zone and is not swung at by the batter.

    7. A solid spherical or pointed projectile, such as one shot from a cannon.

    8. Projectiles of this kind considered as a group.

    9. The testicles.

    10. Courage, especially when reckless.

    11. Great presumptuousness.

  2. Sports

    1. Any of various rounded, movable objects used in various athletic activities and games.

    2. Such an object moving, thrown, hit, or kicked in a particular manner: a low ball; a fair ball.

    3. A game, especially baseball or basketball, played with such an object.

    4. A pitched baseball that does not pass through the strike zone and is not swung at by the batter.

    5. A solid spherical or pointed projectile, such as one shot from a cannon.

    6. Projectiles of this kind considered as a group.

    7. The testicles.

    8. Courage, especially when reckless.

    9. Great presumptuousness.

    1. A solid spherical or pointed projectile, such as one shot from a cannon.

    2. Projectiles of this kind considered as a group.

    3. The testicles.

    4. Courage, especially when reckless.

    5. Great presumptuousness.

  4. A rounded part or protuberance, especially of the body: the ball of the foot.

  5. balls Vulgar Slang

    1. The testicles.

    2. Courage, especially when reckless.

    3. Great presumptuousness.

v.   balled, ball·ing, balls

v.   tr.

  1. To form into a ball.

  2. Vulgar Slang To have sexual intercourse with.

v.   intr.

  1. To become formed into a ball.

  2. Vulgar Slang To have sexual intercourse.

Phrasal Verb(s):
ball upTo confuse; bungle.

Idiom(s):
on the ball Informal

  1. Alert, competent, or efficient: a teacher who is really on the ball.

  2. Relating to qualities, such as competence, skill, or knowledge, that are necessary for success: a manager who has a lot on the ball; a student who has nothing on the ball.


[Middle English bal, probably from Old English *beall; see bhel-2 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary
ball

  1. n.
    a wild time at a party; a good time. : We really had a ball. See ya!
  2. n.
    a testicle. (Usually plural. Usually objectionable. See also balls.) : The teacher preferred “testicles” to “balls,” if they had to be mentioned at all.
  3. in.
    to enjoy oneself. (Ambiguous with the next sense.) : The whole crowd was balling and having a fine time.
  4. in.
    to depart; to leave. : It's late. Let's ball.
  5. tv. & in.
    to copulate [with] someone. (Usually objectionable.) : Isn't there anything more to you than balling?
  6. in.
    to play a ball game. (Probably a deliberate pun on sense 5.) : Bob's out balling with the guys.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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ball (so/sth) up

  1. tv.
    to mess someone or something up; to put someone or something into a state of confusion. : When you interrupted, you balled me up and I lost my place.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
ball up

  1. in.
    to mess up; to make a mess of things. : Take your time at this. Go slow and you won't ball up.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

ball  (2)
"dancing party," 1632, from O.Fr. baller "to dance," from L.L. ballare "to dance," from Gk. ballizein "to dance, jump about," also "to throw," from PIE base *gwel- "to drip, spring forth, throw" (cf. Skt. balbaliti "whirls, twirls," Gk. ballizo "dance," O.E. plega "play"). Hence, "very enjoyable time" (1945, Amer.Eng. slang). Ballroom dancing first attested 1894.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 2ball
Function: transitive verb
: to give a medicinal ball to (as a horse)
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

ball (bôl)
n.

  1. A spherical object or mass.

  2. A bezoar.

  3. A large pill or bolus.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Idioms & Phrases

ball up

  1. Roll something into a ball, as in She loved to knit and was always balling up her yarn. [Early 1800s]

  2. Confuse or bungle, as in Jane got all balled up at the beginning of her speech, or Henry really balled up that exam. This term may come from the fact that when a horse is driven over soft or partly thawed snow, the snow becomes packed into icy balls on its hoofs, making it stumble. Another theory is that it alludes to the vulgar term balls for testicles. [First half of 1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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