bullpen

noun

bull·​pen ˈbu̇l-ˌpen 

also ˈbəl-

variants or less commonly bull pen

plural bullpens also bull pens

1

: a large cell where prisoners are detained until brought into court

Commonly called the "bullpen," the court lockup is behind the courtroom and is used as a holding area for prisoners …

—Bruce A. Scruton

2

a

: a place on a baseball field where pitchers warm up before they start pitching

In the bullpen, Goose Gossage is warming up.

—Tony Scherman

b

: the relief pitchers of a baseball team

After five innings Seattle led 14-2 and, with baseball's best bullpen waiting to protect the lead should starter Aaron Sele falter …

—Sports Illustrated

3

: an open work area not divided into offices

… an alternative to the traditional combination of private offices for the brass and bullpens for the workers.

—Carl Ruff

Examples of bullpen in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

And the Arizona bullpen faced the minimum over the final three innings. —Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2026

Brusdar Graterol has been a key part of the Dodgers' bullpen since arriving from the Minnesota Twins as part of the 2020 trade that sent Kenta Maeda to Minnesota. —Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026

Few other members of the Houston Astros’ bullpen boast such extensive high-leverage experience. —Chandler Rome, New York Times, 1 June 2026

The Dodgers gave the bullpen some breathing room after that. —Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 31 May 2026

In Game 4 of the Athens Regional, Georgia hit five home runs and got a strong performance from its bullpen to defeat Liberty 6-2 Saturday. —Sarah Spencer, AJC.com, 31 May 2026

David Peterson, demoted to the bullpen this week, gave up one hit in four innings for his first regular-season save in the majors. —ABC News, 31 May 2026

The Kansas City Royals have a leaky bullpen. —Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 31 May 2026

Our bullpen’s been extremely taxed. —Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 31 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1809, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for bullpen

• again
• airmen
• amen
• culmen
• flagmen
• gunmen
• lawmen
• oilmen
• playpen
• schoolmen
• tegmen
• ben

Kids Definition

bull pen

noun

1

: a large cell where prisoners are held until brought into court

2

a

: a place on a baseball field where relief pitchers warm up

b

: the relief pitchers of a team