ball·park
ˈbȯl-ˌpärk 
1
: a park or stadium in which ball games (such as baseball) are played
2
: a range (as of prices or views) within which comparison or compromise is possible
: approximately correct : roughly estimated
a ballpark price
a ballpark figure
ballparked; ballparking; ballparks
informal
: to estimate (something) roughly or casually : to give a ballpark estimate of (something, such as a number or price)
The track doesn't release attendance numbers, but media members ballparked it at 42,500 in the facility, which seats more than 50,000.—
Michael Phillips
Michael PhillipsWhen I work with clients I remind them that we are just ballparking the numbers.—Bill Conerly
Bill ConerlyHe looked at the ceiling. He looked at the walls. He turned this way and that, craning his neck, like a contractor about to ballpark an estimate.—Lee Child
Lee ChildSynonyms
Examples of ballpark in a Sentence
Noun
hit a home run out of the ballpark
Adjective
We don't know exactly how many people live in this city, but a ballpark figure would be about two million.
I suspect that the ballpark costs we were quoted for the kitchen renovation will turn out to be too low.
Recent Examples on the WebShomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2024
The tour's second show, for the only the second time in the city's stadium concert history, includes another night at the Milwaukee Brewers' ballpark Saturday.
—Journal Sentinel, 13 Apr. 2024
Baseball fans can watch the Tigers take on the Athletics on the ballpark scoreboard.
—Brendel Hightower, Detroit Free Press, 4 Apr. 2024
The ballpark currently seats just over 14,000 people including the stands, the lawn behind center field and standing room only.
—Rosalio Ahumada, Sacramento Bee, 4 Apr. 2024
The April 2 defeat of a three-eighths cent sales tax to fund a new downtown Royals ballpark and renovate the Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium was almost assuredly not the end of the matter.
—David A. Lieb, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Apr. 2024
All these years later, as Tuesday showed, Conrad’s still romantic about baseball, still coming to the ballpark with no intention of leaving.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 3 Apr. 2024
For example, the Fenway Park Suite patio features original ballpark seats.
—Sally French Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
Jackson County voters rejected a 40-year sales tax that would have helped pay for construction of a Royals ballpark immediately south of the downtown freeway loop in the East Crossroads and a major renovation of Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 3 Apr. 2024
Renata Cló, The Arizona Republic, 16 Oct. 2022
Then enjoy a ballpark-style hot dog or cheeseburger lunch in right-center field on Bayview Terrace for $20 adults and $15 for children.
—Laura Groch, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Oct. 2022
An easy way to do this is create an Excel spreadsheet to track your spending or go back though your bank and credit card statements from the past year to get a ballpark idea of your monthly spending.
—Ashira Prossack, Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022
The Astros share their spring training complex and ballpark with the Washington Nationals.
—Chron, 5 Mar. 2021
Of course, the idea is to keep growing your art over time, but having a ballpark figure for those initial pieces keeps your search more focused.
—Shivani Vora, refinery29.com, 30 Dec. 2020
And after two starts in this strange, empty-ballpark, virtual-fan season, Berrios still has much to prove.
—Star Tribune, 31 July 2020
Rachel Kurzius, Washington Post, 5 Mar. 2024
That dividing line is tough to pinpoint in real time, but the Fed uses models based on past data to ballpark it.
—Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2024
As a general recommendation, Tafur ballparks it at around 400 to 500 calories.
—Women's Health, 11 July 2023
Noun
West Sacramento, home to the ballpark where the A’s will play, is not actually in the city of Sacramento — or even in Sacramento County, for that matter.
—Shomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2024
The tour's second show, for the only the second time in the city's stadium concert history, includes another night at the Milwaukee Brewers' ballpark Saturday.
—Journal Sentinel, 13 Apr. 2024
Baseball fans can watch the Tigers take on the Athletics on the ballpark scoreboard.
—Brendel Hightower, Detroit Free Press, 4 Apr. 2024
The ballpark currently seats just over 14,000 people including the stands, the lawn behind center field and standing room only.
—Rosalio Ahumada, Sacramento Bee, 4 Apr. 2024
The April 2 defeat of a three-eighths cent sales tax to fund a new downtown Royals ballpark and renovate the Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium was almost assuredly not the end of the matter.
—David A. Lieb, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Apr. 2024
All these years later, as Tuesday showed, Conrad’s still romantic about baseball, still coming to the ballpark with no intention of leaving.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 3 Apr. 2024
For example, the Fenway Park Suite patio features original ballpark seats.
—Sally French Of Nerdwallet, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2024
Jackson County voters rejected a 40-year sales tax that would have helped pay for construction of a Royals ballpark immediately south of the downtown freeway loop in the East Crossroads and a major renovation of Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 3 Apr. 2024
Adjective
Property owners can get a ballpark sense of their tax liability related to a bond or override by reading their school district's voter information.
—Renata Cló, The Arizona Republic, 16 Oct. 2022
Then enjoy a ballpark-style hot dog or cheeseburger lunch in right-center field on Bayview Terrace for $20 adults and $15 for children.
—Laura Groch, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Oct. 2022
An easy way to do this is create an Excel spreadsheet to track your spending or go back though your bank and credit card statements from the past year to get a ballpark idea of your monthly spending.
—Ashira Prossack, Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022
The Astros share their spring training complex and ballpark with the Washington Nationals.
—Chron, 5 Mar. 2021
Of course, the idea is to keep growing your art over time, but having a ballpark figure for those initial pieces keeps your search more focused.
—Shivani Vora, refinery29.com, 30 Dec. 2020
And after two starts in this strange, empty-ballpark, virtual-fan season, Berrios still has much to prove.
—Star Tribune, 31 July 2020
Verb
These systems come in different shapes, sizes and configurations, but May ballparks the average cost of one suited to a single-family home or an ADU like Ferrari’s at $8,000 to $10,000.
—Rachel Kurzius, Washington Post, 5 Mar. 2024
That dividing line is tough to pinpoint in real time, but the Fed uses models based on past data to ballpark it.
—Jeanna Smialek, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2024
As a general recommendation, Tafur ballparks it at around 400 to 500 calories.
—Women's Health, 11 July 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ballpark.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Ballpark.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ballpark. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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