Vocabulary     

What does ball mean?

Definitions for ball
bɔlball

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word ball.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. ballnoun

    round object that is hit or thrown or kicked in games

    "the ball travelled 90 mph on his serve"; "the mayor threw out the first ball"; "the ball rolled into the corner pocket"

  2. musket ball, ballnoun

    a solid projectile that is shot by a musket

    "they had to carry a ramrod as well as powder and ball"

  3. ball, globe, orbnoun

    an object with a spherical shape

    "a ball of fire"

  4. ballnoun

    the people assembled at a lavish formal dance

    "the ball was already emptying out before the fire alarm sounded"

  5. testis, testicle, orchis, ball, ballock, bollock, nut, eggnoun

    one of the two male reproductive glands that produce spermatozoa and secrete androgens

    "she kicked him in the balls and got away"

  6. ballnoun

    a spherical object used as a plaything

    "he played with his rubber ball in the bathtub"

  7. Ball, Lucille Ballnoun

    United States comedienne best known as the star of a popular television program (1911-1989)

  8. ball, clod, glob, lump, clump, chunknoun

    a compact mass

    "a ball of mud caught him on the shoulder"

  9. ball, formalnoun

    a lavish dance requiring formal attire

  10. ballnoun

    a more or less rounded anatomical body or mass

    "the ball at the base of the thumb"; "he stood on the balls of his feet"

  11. ballnoun

    the game of baseball

  12. ballverb

    a pitch that is not in the strike zone

    "he threw nine straight balls before the manager yanked him"

  13. ballverb

    form into a ball by winding or rolling

    "ball wool"

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Ballnoun

    Etymology: bol, Dan. bol. Dut. Bel, diminutively Belin, the sun, or Apollo of the Celtæ, was called by the ancient Gauls Abellio. Whatever was round, and in particular the head, was called by the ancients either Bâl, or Bel, and likewise Ból and Biil. Among the modern Persians, the head is called Pole; and the Flemings still call the head Bolle. Πόλος is the head or poll, and πολεῖν, is to turn. Βολος likewise signifies a round ball, whence bowl, and bell, and ball, which the Welch term bêl. By the Scotch also the head is named bhêl; whence the English bill is derived, signifying the beak of a bird. Figuratively, the Phrygians and Thurians, by βάλλην understood a king. Hence also, in the Syriack dialects, βαάλ, βήλ, and likewise βῶλ, signifies lord, and by this name also the sun; and, in some dialects, Ἤλ and Ἲλ, whence Ἲλος, and Ἥλιος, Ϝήλιος, and Βηλιος, and also in the Celtick diminutive way of expression, Ἕλενος, Ϝέλενος, and Βέλενος, signified the sun; and Ἑλένη, Ϝελένη, and Βελένη, the moon. Among the Teutonicks, hol and heil have the same meaning; whence the adjective holig, or heilig, is derived, and signifies divine or holy; and the aspiration being changed into s, the Romans form their Sol. William Baxter

    The worms with many feet, which round themselves into balls under logs of timber, but not in the timber. Francis Bacon.

    Nor arms they wear, nor swords and bucklers wield,
    But whirl from leathern strings huge balls of lead. Dryden.

    Like a ball of snow tumbling down a hill, he gathered strength as he passed. James Howell, Vocal Forest.

    Still unripen’d in the dewy mines,
    Within the ball a trembling water shines,
    That through the chrystal darts. Joseph Addison, Rem. on Italy.

    Such of those corpuscles as happened to combine into one mass, formed the metallick and mineral balls, or nodules, which we find. John Woodward, Natural History.

    Balls to the stars, and thralls to fortune’s reign,
    Turn’d from themselves, infected with their cage,
    Where death is fear’d, and life is held with pain. Philip Sidney.

    Those I have seen play at ball, grow extremely earnest who should have the ball. Philip Sidney.

    Let lots decide it.
    For ev’ry number’d captive put a ball
    Into an urn; three only black be there,
    The rest, all white, are safe. John Dryden, Don Sebastian.

    Minos, the strict inquisitor, appears;
    Round in his urn the blended balls he rowls;
    Absolves the just, and dooms the guilty souls. Dryden.

    Julius and Antony, those lords of all,
    Low at her feet present the conquer’d ball. George Granville.

    Ye gods, what justice rules the ball?
    Freedom and arts together fall. Alexander Pope.

    Hear the tragedy of a young man, that by right ought to hold the ball of a kingdom; but, by fortune, is made himself a ball, tossed from misery to misery, and from place to place. Francis Bacon, Henry VII.

    Be subject to no sight but mine; invisible
    To every eye ball else. William Shakespeare, Tempest.

    To make a stern countenance, let your brow bend so, that that it may almost touch the ball of the eye. Henry Peacham.

  2. Ballnoun

    An entertainment of dancing, at which the preparations are made at the expence of some particular person.

    Etymology: bal , Fr. from ballare , low Lat. from βαλλίζειν, to dance.

    If golden sconces hang not on the walls,
    To light the costly suppers and the balls. Dryden.

    He would make no extraordinary figure at a ball; but I can assure the ladies, for their consolation, that he has writ better verses on the sex than any man. Jonathan Swift.

Wikipedia

  1. BALL

    BALL (Biochemical Algorithms Library) is a C++ class framework and set of algorithms and data structures for molecular modelling and computational structural bioinformatics, a Python interface to this library, and a graphical user interface to BALL, the molecule viewer BALLView. BALL has evolved from a commercial product into free-of-charge open-source software licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL). BALLView is licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL) license. BALL and BALLView have been ported to the operating systems Linux, macOS, Solaris, and Windows. The molecule viewer BALLView, also developed by the BALL project team, is a C++ application of BALL using Qt, and OpenGL with the real-time ray tracer RTFact as render back-ends. For both, BALLView offers three-dimensional and stereoscopic visualizing in several different modes, and applying directly the algorithms of the BALL library via its graphical user interface. The BALL project is developed and maintained by groups at Saarland University, Mainz University, and University of Tübingen. Both the library and the viewer are used for education and research. BALL packages have been made available in the Debian project.

ChatGPT

  1. ball

    A ball is a round or spherical object, usually used in sports or games. It can be made of various materials such as leather, rubber, or plastic, and comes in different sizes to suit specific sports or activities. In mathematics, a ball is a three-dimensional space within a specific radius around a central point.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Ballnoun

    any round or roundish body or mass; a sphere or globe; as, a ball of twine; a ball of snow

  2. Ballnoun

    a spherical body of any substance or size used to play with, as by throwing, knocking, kicking, etc

  3. Ballnoun

    a general name for games in which a ball is thrown, kicked, or knocked. See Baseball, and Football

  4. Ballnoun

    any solid spherical, cylindrical, or conical projectile of lead or iron, to be discharged from a firearm; as, a cannon ball; a rifle ball; -- often used collectively; as, powder and ball. Spherical balls for the smaller firearms are commonly called bullets

  5. Ballnoun

    a flaming, roundish body shot into the air; a case filled with combustibles intended to burst and give light or set fire, or to produce smoke or stench; as, a fire ball; a stink ball

  6. Ballnoun

    a leather-covered cushion, fastened to a handle called a ballstock; -- formerly used by printers for inking the form, but now superseded by the roller

  7. Ballnoun

    a roundish protuberant portion of some part of the body; as, the ball of the thumb; the ball of the foot

  8. Ballnoun

    a large pill, a form in which medicine is commonly given to horses; a bolus

  9. Ballnoun

    the globe or earth

  10. Ballverb

    to gather balls which cling to the feet, as of damp snow or clay; to gather into balls; as, the horse balls; the snow balls

  11. Ballverb

    to heat in a furnace and form into balls for rolling

  12. Ballverb

    to form or wind into a ball; as, to ball cotton

  13. Ballnoun

    a social assembly for the purpose of dancing

Wikidata

  1. Ball

    A ball is a formal dance. Attenders wear evening attire, which is specified on the invitation as black tie or white tie. Social dance forms a large part of the evening; actual ballroom dancing may or may not occur.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Ball

    bawl, n. anything round: any celestial body, esp. the 'globe:' the golden orb borne with the sceptre as the emblem of sovereignty: a globular body to play with in tennis, football, golf, billiards, &c.: any rounded protuberant part of the body: a bullet, or any missile thrown from an engine of war: a rounded mass of anything: a throw or delivery of the ball at cricket: a well-known game played with a ball.&mdamdash;v.i. to gather itself into a ball, become clogged.—ns. Ball′-cart′ridge, a cartridge containing both powder and ball [Ball and Cartridge]; Ball′-cock, the stopcock of a cistern, attached to one end of a lever, at the other end of which is a hollow metal ball which rises and falls with the water, thus regulating the supply; Ball′-flow′er, an ornament of the decorated style of Gothic architecture, resembling a ball placed in a circular flower.—adj. Ball′-proof, proof against balls discharged from firearms.—Ball and socket, a joint formed of a ball partly enclosed in a cup, thus insuring great strength; Ball of the eye, the eye within the lids and socket.—No ball, a ball unfairly bowled.—Three golden or brass balls, the sign of a pawnbroker.—To have the ball at one's feet, to have a thing in one's power; To keep the ball up or rolling, to keep from flagging; To take up the ball, to take one's turn in anything.—Wide ball, one out of the batsman's reach. [M. E. bal, Scand. böllr; cog. with Old High Ger. ballo, pallo.]

  2. Ball

    bawl, n. an entertainment of dancing.—n. Ball′room.—To open the ball, to begin the dancing, to begin operations. [O. Fr. bal, baller, to dance—Low L. ballare, referred by some to Gr. ballizein.]

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. ball

    In a general sense, implies a spherical and round body, whether naturally so or formed into that figure by art. In a military view it comprehends all sorts of bullets for fire-arms, from the cannon to the pistol: also those pyrotechnic projectiles for guns or mortars, whether intended to destroy, or only to give light, smoke, or stench.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. ball

    Is a general term applied to every kind of spherical shot fired from a musket, rifle, or cannon. Leaden balls are chiefly used for the small-arms and iron for the artillery. See Cartridge, Shot, Shells.

Editors Contribution

  1. ball

    A type of product created for a specific sport.

    A ball is used for football, Rugby, Tennis etc.


    Submitted by MaryC on February 13, 2020  

Suggested Resources

  1. ball

    Song lyrics by ball -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by ball on the Lyrics.com website.

  2. BALL

    What does BALL stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the BALL acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.

  3. Ball

    Ball vs. Bawl -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words Ball and Bawl.

Etymology and Origins

  1. Ball

    A dancing party received this name primarily from the curious ancient Ball Play in Church by the Dean and choir boys of Naples during the “Feast of Fools” at Easter. While singing an antiphon the boys caught the ball thrown by the Dean as they danced around him. At private dancing parties the dancers always threw a ball at one another as, to the sound of their own voices, they whirled around in sets, the pastime consisting in loosening hands in time to catch it. Afterwards the ball was discarded, but the dance time received the name of a Ballad, from the Latin ballare, to dance.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. BALL

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Ball is ranked #508 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Ball surname appeared 66,059 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 22 would have the surname Ball.

    82.3% or 54,380 total occurrences were White.
    12% or 7,927 total occurrences were Black.
    2.3% or 1,552 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    1.7% or 1,176 total occurrences were of two or more races.
    0.9% or 634 total occurrences were Asian.
    0.5% or 383 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.

Matched Categories

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ball' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #1532

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ball' in Written Corpus Frequency: #879

  3. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'ball' in Nouns Frequency: #520

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

How to pronounce ball?

How to say ball in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of ball in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of ball in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of ball in a Sentence

  1. Jerry Jones:

    I call it ‘throw-up ball.’ This will arguably be the most-watched game other than the Super Bowl. I hate that it got down to just throwing the ball up and getting the penalties to get you big plays.

  2. Jared Bernstein:

    I would look at the following variables, which happens to be the same ones that the group I was just talking about, retail sales, payroll, employment, consumer spending, industrial production, all of those have not been flashing red, all of those are not in recessionary territory, now, if you're asking me to look around a corner and say where the economy is going to be, I got to tell you that everybody's crystal ball is a bit cracked right now, and I think the uncertainty out there makes it tough.

  3. Courtney Williams:

    J.J. was going crazy today, i told her I felt like I could put up the ball from half court and she was going to look out for me and get the rebound.

  4. Mike Rowe:

    True, I am often attired in a sweatshirt and ball cap, and yes, I do share a certain resemblance with the culprit, i've also been spotted in Medford on more than one occasion, (a lovely town by any standard.) However, I am not.

  5. Kanye West:

    This is our Super Bowl, you know, and someone's gotta be mad that Marshawn didn't get the ball.

more sentences »

Popularity rank by frequency of use

ball#1#1887#10000

References

Translations for ball

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

  • ампылAbkhaz
  • ضرة, كبة, كرةArabic
  • торгӏоAvaric
  • яйцо́, мяч, яе́чка, я́йка, шарBelarusian
  • кълбо́, бал, удрям едно мадо, възглавничка, сфе́ра, ташак, гюле, то́пкаBulgarian
  • པོ་ལོTibetan Standard
  • balBreton
  • bola, pilota, pilotesCatalan, Valencian
  • буьркChechen
  • koule, klubko, ples, míč, bál, vejceCzech
  • bold, bal, kugleDanish
  • Kugel, Ball, Fußballen, Mist, Knäuel, EiGerman
  • σφαίρα, χορός, μπάλαGreek
  • bulo, sfero, pilko, globo, baloEsperanto
  • [[coger]] con, tirada, pelota, huevos, esfera, bola, cojones, balón, círculo, agallas, baile, [[tirarse]] a, [[follar]] con, bala, pelotasSpanish
  • pall, ballEstonian
  • گوی, توپ, کرهPersian
  • panna, palli, pallo, tanssiaiset, paska, nussia, kuula, lankakerä, päkiä, kerä, muna, naida, paskapuheFinnish
  • dansur, dansiveitsla, ballFaroese
  • boulet, balle, boule, couille, conneries, bal, couilles, peloteFrench
  • bal, bolWestern Frisian
  • liathróid, róidlianna, cuachIrish
  • crig, bluckan, daunseManx
  • dunkulenHausa
  • כדורHebrew
  • गोला, नृत्यसभा, गेंदHindi
  • boulHaitian Creole
  • mogyoró, gömb, gombolyag, golyó, tök, labdaHungarian
  • գնդոլորտ, գունդ, պարահանդես, գնդիկArmenian
  • bolaIndonesian
  • baloneto, baloIdo
  • kjarkur, kjaftæði, bolti, rugl, kúlaIcelandic
  • palla, scopare, pallone, trombare, gomitolo, ballo, boiateItalian
  • כַּדוּרHebrew
  • 球, 玉, 鞠, 正球, 金玉, 毬, 舞踏会, 睾丸, まり, ボールJapanese
  • კვერცხები, მეჯლისი, სფერო, წვეულება, ბურთი, ბალიGeorgian
  • ಚೆಂಡುKannada
  • 球, 공, 무도회, 볼, 불알, 舞蹈會, 구, 불Korean
  • gun, tepik, hol, تۆپ, top, gogKurdish
  • пас берүү, түйүнчөк, түйдөк, шар, топ берүү, пас, түрмөкKyrgyz
  • pilaLatin
  • Ball, BalLuxembourgish, Letzeburgesch
  • ບານLao
  • kamuolys, kiaušasLithuanian
  • bumba, lodeLatvian
  • сфе́ра, кло́пче, то́пка, бал, ма́диња, ма́де, та́шак, ја́болко, то́пки, ја́јце, ѓу́ле, то́пчеMacedonian
  • പന്ത്, ഗോളംMalayalam
  • бөмбөгMongolian
  • bola, majlis tarian, telur, korah, pesta tarianMalay
  • ballunMaltese
  • ballNorwegian
  • kloten, bal, kluwen, bolletje, bolleke, [[kloten]] aan z’n lijf, kloot, bol, ballen, kogelDutch
  • ballNorwegian Nynorsk
  • ballNorwegian
  • портиOssetian, Ossetic
  • kula, kłębek, bal, jaja, piłka, jajoPolish
  • پنډوس, ټوپکیPashto, Pushto
  • comer, bolas, colhões, círculo, bola, baile, bala, bola do pé, besteira, sacoPortuguese
  • bura, balla, boraRomansh
  • bilă, minge, ghem, coiRomanian
  • поду́шечка, яи́чко, шарик, мяч, яйцо́, шар, бал, ядри́ть, сфе́ра, бол, сфера, ядро́, мудёж, клубо́к, я́йцаRussian
  • गुड, कन्दुक, पिण्डSanskrit
  • лопта, ples, плес, klupka, klupko, lopta, bal, балSerbo-Croatian
  • බෝලයSinhala, Sinhalese
  • gule, lopta, guľa, ples, bálSlovak
  • jajca, krogla, žoga, plesSlovene
  • topAlbanian
  • kula, boll, trampdyna, knulla, klot, skitsnack, stake, bal, balle, nystanSwedish
  • mpiraSwahili
  • பந்துTamil
  • ఉండ, బంతిTelugu
  • ลูกบอลThai
  • bola, bayag, itlogTagalog
  • fo'i puluTonga (Tonga Islands)
  • top, haya, küre, gülle, taşak, mermi, yumak, balo, yumurtaTurkish
  • яйце́, м'яч, ядро́, ку́ля, яє́чкоUkrainian
  • گولا, گیندUrdu
  • toʻpiUzbek
  • bóng, vũ hội, banh, 舞會Vietnamese
  • באַל, פּילקעYiddish
  • 球Chinese

Get even more translations for ball »

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