ballpoint pen

noun

ball·​point pen ˈbȯl-ˌpȯint- How to pronounce ballpoint pen (audio)
variants or less commonly ballpoint
: a pen having as the writing point a small rotating metal ball that inks itself by contact with an inner magazine

Examples of ballpoint pen in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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When an actor charms the pants off us, nothing, especially a writer with a ballpoint pen and bad hair, can persuade us to put them back on. Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 18 Sep. 2025 Print out your house numbers in an attractive font, then trace them onto your pumpkin with a ballpoint pen. Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Sep. 2025 Features shared by both models into a fold-out M390 steel cutting blade; a flathead screwdriver; a bottle opener; a retractable black ballpoint pen; an 8-cm ruler; a rope cutter; and an automotive window-glass-breaking stud. New Atlas, 21 Aug. 2025 Executed in ballpoint pen, colored pencil, and pencil, the drawing depicts oversize chess pieces amid a sky of soft clouds. Daniel Cassady For Artnews, Robb Report, 21 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ballpoint pen

Word History

First Known Use

1953, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ballpoint pen was in 1953

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Cite this Entry

“Ballpoint pen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ballpoint%20pen. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.

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