baseball

noun, often attributive base·ball \ ˈbās-ˌbȯl \

|Updated on: 23 Jun 2018

Definition of baseball

: a game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players each on a large field having four bases that mark the course a runner must take to score; also : the ball used in this game

See baseball defined for English-language learners

See baseball defined for kids

Examples of baseball in a Sentence

We watched baseball on TV last night.

Recent Examples of baseball from the Web

Phil Simms Southern, Class of 1974 Simms played baseball and football at Southern, but an injury during his senior season scared away a lot of recruiters.

— louisville courier journal, The Courier-Journal, "12 of the greatest sports stars who went to high school in Louisville," 20 June 2018
After playing ugly baseball for the first five games of this week’s homestand against the Boston Red Sox and Miami — shut out twice and outscored 20-9 — the Orioles put together their most complete game of the homestand.

— eduardo a. encina, baltimoresun.com, "Orioles beat Marlins, 10-4, to end 9-game slide, earn first home win since Mother's Day," 17 June 2018
Krull originally signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Arkansas but left the program after his freshman season in 2017.

— jordan mcpherson, miamiherald, "Mullen adds talent to the Gators roster with a commitment from junior college tight end," 15 June 2018
House Republican Whip Steve Scalise will play baseball against the Democrats Thursday night, exactly one year after he was shot during a practice.

— CBS News, "One year after near-fatal shooting, Steve Scalise returns to the baseball field not quite the same," 14 June 2018
My goal isn’t to play minor league baseball for 15 years.

— pat disabato, Daily Southtown, "Disabato: Ray of sunshine as St. Rita graduate Mike Costanzo thrilled to be drafted by Tampa Bay out of Austin Peay," 13 June 2018
Koehn and Kocon reportedly played youth baseball together before going their separate ways in high school, but maintained a close relationship, according to the outlet.

— benjamin brown, Fox News, "Minnesota HS pitcher consoles friend after striking him out to reach state championship," 13 June 2018
The two players have been close friends since playing youth baseball together.

— brant parsons, OrlandoSentinel.com, "HS pitcher consoles friend after striking him out to win big game," 11 June 2018
On paper, Houston has the superior team with the best starting rotation in baseball.

— ryan divish, The Seattle Times, "Mariners Sunday mailbag: Answering the Robinson Cano questions, plus a look at playoff competition," 11 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'baseball.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of baseball

1845

in the meaning defined above

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BASEBALL Defined for English Language Learners

baseball

noun

Definition of baseball for English Language Learners

: a game played on a large field by two teams of nine players who try to score runs by hitting a small ball with a bat and then running to each of the four bases without being put out
: the ball used in baseball