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

But beyond the bullpen, the Cubs’ bench is proving to be a real weapon for Counsell. —Andy Martinez, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2026

The combination of a shaky bullpen and even worse infield defense harmed the Twins multiple times during the team’s current four-game losing streak. —Dan Hayes, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2026

The Rays were also at the forefront of other innovations and/or adjustments, such as defensive shifts, lineup platoons, matchup bullpens, star-quality super-utility players and putting a numbers nerd (technically a process and analytics coach) in the dugout. —Marc Topkin, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Apr. 2026

Just like in two of the Angels’ losses in New York earlier in the week, the bullpen sprang a leak. —Doug Padilla, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026

After allowing three runs in the first two innings, Colorado shut down the most productive offense in the majors with 3 1/3 shutout innings from its bullpen. —CBS News, 19 Apr. 2026

Manager Warren Schaeffer was forced to demote him to the bullpen as a cleanup reliever. —Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026

Kimbrel was the best available reliever in the Mets’ bullpen. —Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2026

Luis Torrens hit a leadoff double in the sixth, but Assad and right-hander Jacob Webb retired the next six in order, and the Cubs’ bullpen continued to lock it down, giving the lineup a chance to come back. —Abbey Mastracco, Hartford Courant, 19 Apr. 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