Ball

From Fresh Dictionary

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Contents

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English

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Pronunciation

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Homophones

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Etymology 1

The first known use of the word ball in English in the sense of a globular body that is played with was in 1205 in Laȝamon’s Brut, or Chronicle of Britain in the phrase, "Summe heo driuen balles wide ȝeond Þa feldes." The word came from the Middle English bal (inflected as ball-e, -es in turn from Old Norse böllr (pronounced [bɔllr]; compare Old Swedish baller, and Swedish båll) from Old Teutonic ballu-z, (whence probably Middle High German bal, ball-es, Middle Dutch bal), a cognate with Old High German ballo, pallo, Middle High German balle from Old Teutonic ballon (weak masculine), and Old High German ballâ, pallâ, Middle High German balle, Old Teutonic ballôn (weak feminine). No Old English representative of any of these is known. (The answering forms in Old English would have been beallu, -a, -e — compare bealluc, ballock.) If ball- was native in Teutonic, it may have been a cognate with the Latin foll-is in sense of a "thing blown up or inflated." In the later Middle English spelling balle the word coincided graphically with the French balle "ball" and "bale", which has hence been erroneously assumed to be its source.

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Noun

Singular
ball

Plural
balls

  1. A solid or hollow sphere.
  2. An object, generally spherical, used for playing games.
  3. A quantity of string, thread, etc., wound into a spherical shape.
    ball of wool
  4. (baseball) A pitch that falls outside of the strike zone.
  5. (pinball) An opportunity to launch the ball into play.
  6. (ballistics) A solid nonexplosive missile for a cannon, etc.
  7. (mathematics{{#if:|, {{{2}}}{{#if:|, {{{3}}}{{#if:|, {{{4}}}{{#if:|, {{{5}}}{{#if:|, {{{6}}}{{#if:|, {{{7}}}{{#if:|, {{{8}}}{{#if:|, {{{9}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}) The set of points in a metric space lying within a given distance (the radius) of a given point; specifically, the homologue of the disk in a Euclidean space of any number of dimensions.
  8. (mildly vulgar slang; usually in plural) A testicle.
  9. (in plural; mildly vulgar slang) Nonsense.
    That’s a load of balls, and you know it! — Synonyms — See WikiSaurus:Nonsense
  10. (slang) Courage.
    I doubt he’s got the balls to tell him off.
  11. (cricket) A single delivery by the bowler, six of which make up an over.
  12. (anatomy{{#if:|, {{{2}}}{{#if:|, {{{3}}}{{#if:|, {{{4}}}{{#if:|, {{{5}}}{{#if:|, {{{6}}}{{#if:|, {{{7}}}{{#if:|, {{{8}}}{{#if:|, {{{9}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}) the ball of a foot
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Synonyms
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Derived terms
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Translations

a solid or hollow sphere

an object, generally spherical, used for playing games

quantity of string, thread, etc., wound into a spherical shape

baseball: a pitch that falls outside the strike zone

pinball: an opportunity to launch the ball into play

ballistics: a solid nonexplosive missile

mathematics: set of points in a metric space lying within a given distance of a given point

mildly vulgar slang: testicle

in plural - mildly vulgar slang - nonsense

in plural — slang — courage

  • Dutch: kloten aan z’n lijf m pl

cricket: a single delivery

  • Japanese: 正球 (せいきゅう, seikyÅ«)

(anatomy{{#if:|, {{{2}}}{{#if:|, {{{3}}}{{#if:|, {{{4}}}{{#if:|, {{{5}}}{{#if:|, {{{6}}}{{#if:|, {{{7}}}{{#if:|, {{{8}}}{{#if:|, {{{9}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}) the ball of a foot

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Translations to be checked

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Transitive verb

Infinitive
to ball

Third person singular
balls

Simple past
balled

Past participle
balled

Present participle
balling

  1. (coarse slang) To have sexual intercourse with.
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Synonyms
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Translations

coarse slang: have sexual intercourse with

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Etymology 2

French, from Late Latin ballare.

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Noun

Singular
ball

Plural
balls

  1. A formal dance.
  2. (colloquial) A very enjoyable time.
    I had a ball at that concert
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Synonyms
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Derived terms
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Related terms
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Translations

formal dance


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Icelandic

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Noun

ball n. (ball-s, böll)

  1. dance
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Irish

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Noun

ball m

  1. member
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Swedish

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Adjective

ball -t

  1. (slang) cool, hip, fun, entertaining
    Det är ballt att åka skateboard.
    "It’s cool to ride a skateboard."
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Noun

ball (more commonly: balle)

  1. (vulgar, colloquial) shlong (the penis); balls (testicles)ar:ball

de:ball el:ball fr:ball ko:ball io:ball it:ball hu:ball no:ball pl:ball pt:ball ru:ball fi:ball sv:ball ta:ball uk:ball zh:ball

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