curveball

noun

curve·​ball ˈkərv-ˌbȯl 

: a slow or moderately fast baseball pitch thrown with spin to make it swerve downward and usually to the left when thrown from the right hand or to the right when thrown from the left hand

curveball verb

Examples of curveball in a Sentence

The batter struck out on a curveball.

Recent Examples on the Web

Cabrera got Trout to swing over the curveball down and out of the zone to strike him out. —Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 31 Mar. 2026

The trouble began immediately in the third, with Everson Pereira sending a middle-middle curveball down the left-field line for a double. —Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 31 Mar. 2026

The Rangers chose to carry the Rule 5 draftee on their opening day roster because of a curveball-fastball combination that played well in camp. —Shawn McFarland, Dallas Morning News, 30 Mar. 2026

That brought up Pages, who fell behind 1-and-2 but golfed a curveball at the knees into the left field pavilion for his three-run home run. —Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 27 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing curveball

• throw (someone) a curve/curveball

Rhymes for curveball

• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• basketball
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• catarrhal
• cortisol
• ethanol
• fireball
• gasohol