line drive

noun

: a batted baseball hit in a nearly straight line usually not far above the ground

Examples of line drive in a Sentence

He hit a hard line drive to the shortstop.

Recent Examples on the Web

Manager Mike Shildt went to Robert Suarez, who got a strikeout, a sacrifice fly and allowed a single that re-loaded the bases before sticking out his glove to catch a line drive and end the game. —Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Aug. 2025

The Giants continued padding that lead in the top of the seventh when Patrick Bailey scorched a line drive over the outstretched glove of first baseman Pete Alonso to drive in Lee and increase the lead to 3-0. —Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 3 Aug. 2025

What earned Kirk the All-Star honour, though, is line drives, high-contact and gap power. —Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 7 July 2025

And Bellinger’s sensational shoestring catch on a Juan Soto line drive turned into a rally-killing double play in the seventh. —Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 6 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1903, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for line drive

• overdrive
• alive
• archive
• arrive
• beehive
• connive
• contrive
• deprive
• derive
• revive
• survive
• dive

Kids Definition

line drive

noun

: a batted baseball hit not far above the ground in a nearly straight line