jump ball
noun
: a method of putting a basketball into play by tossing it into the air between two opponents who jump up and attempt to tap the ball to a teammate
also
: a ball put into play in this manner
Examples of jump ball in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Davion Mitchell brought the ball down while Allen was on the floor after falling from the jump ball.
—
Jared Weiss, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2025
The map in the Senate is nearly Democrat-proof, but the House, with a 7-seat majority today, and likely a 5-seat majority eighteen months from now, is going to be a jump ball.
—Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Apr. 2025
The game was knotted with 20 seconds to play, when officials didn’t get a good view on an out-of-bounds call, and therefore ruled a jump ball.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 2 Apr. 2025
There was that 2022 Storm-Mercury game when after forcing a jump ball, Taurasi and her best friend Sue Bird (in Bird’s final season in the league) stood in the paint bickering at one another about potential fouls.
—Chantel Jennings, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jump ball
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Jared Weiss, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2025
The map in the Senate is nearly Democrat-proof, but the House, with a 7-seat majority today, and likely a 5-seat majority eighteen months from now, is going to be a jump ball.
—Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Apr. 2025
The game was knotted with 20 seconds to play, when officials didn’t get a good view on an out-of-bounds call, and therefore ruled a jump ball.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 2 Apr. 2025
There was that 2022 Storm-Mercury game when after forcing a jump ball, Taurasi and her best friend Sue Bird (in Bird’s final season in the league) stood in the paint bickering at one another about potential fouls.
—Chantel Jennings, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jump ball
Cite this Entry
“Jump ball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jump%20ball. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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