ball Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun 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. noun a solid projectile that is shot by a musket
    musket ball.
    • they had to carry a ramrod as well as powder and ball
  3. noun an object with a spherical shape
    globe; orb.
    • a ball of fire
  4. noun the people assembled at a lavish formal dance
    • the ball was already emptying out before the fire alarm sounded
  5. noun one of the two male reproductive glands that produce spermatozoa and secrete androgens
    testis; orchis; nut; ballock; bollock; egg; testicle.
    • she kicked him in the balls and got away
  6. noun a spherical object used as a plaything
    • he played with his rubber ball in the bathtub
  7. noun United States comedienne best known as the star of a popular television program (1911-1989)
    Lucille Ball.
  8. noun a compact mass
    clod; glob; lump; clump; chunk.
    • a ball of mud caught him on the shoulder
  9. noun a lavish dance requiring formal attire
    formal.
  10. noun 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. noun the game of baseball
  12. noun a pitch that is not in the strike zone
    • he threw nine straight balls before the manager yanked him
  13. verb form into a ball by winding or rolling
    • ball wool

WordNet

Ball noun
Etymology
OE. bal, balle; akin to OHG. balla, palla, G. ball, Icel. böllr, ball; cf. F. balle. Cf. 1st Bale, n., Pallmall.
Definitions
  1. Any round or roundish body or mass; a sphere or globe; as, a ball of twine; a ball of snow.
  2. A spherical body of any substance or size used to play with, as by throwing, knocking, kicking, etc.
  3. A general name for games in which a ball is thrown, kicked, or knocked. See Baseball, and Football.
  4. Any solid spherical, cylindrical, or conical projectile of lead or iron, to be discharged from a firearm; as, a cannon ball; a rife ball; -- often used collectively; as, powder and ball. Spherical balls for the smaller firearms are commonly called bullets.
  5. (Pirotechnics & Mil.) 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. (Print.) 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. A roundish protuberant portion of some part of the body; as, the ball of the thumb; the ball of the foot.
  8. (Far.) A large pill, a form in which medicine is commonly given to horses; a bolus. White.
  9. The globe or earth. Pope.
    Move round the dark terrestrial ball. Addison.
    Syn. -- See Globe.
Ball intransitive verb
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Balled (); present participle & verbal noun Balling
Definitions
  1. 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.
Ball transitive verb
Definitions
  1. (Metal.) To heat in a furnace and form into balls for rolling.
  2. To form or wind into a ball; as, to ball cotton.
Ball noun
Etymology
F. bal, fr. OF. baler to dance, fr. LL. ballare. Of uncertain origin; cf. Gr. to toss or throw, or , , to leap, bound, to dance, jump about; or cf. 1st Ball, n.
Definitions
  1. A social assembly for the purpose of dancing.

Webster 1913