pinball machine

noun

: an amusement device in which a ball propelled by a plunger scores points as it rolls down a slanting surface among pins and targets

called also pinball game

Examples of pinball machine in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Throughout the hotel there are pieces to appeal to cinephiles in general and Coppola stans specifically, like the statue of a golden hawk from Megalopolis in the parking lot and the Godfather pinball machines and Apocalypse Now carpet in the lobby. Rebecca Keegan, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019 In the back of the Divine Barrel Brewing tap room in NoDa, pinball machines and board games surround a vending machine. Virginia Brown, Charlotte Observer, 7 May 2025 Smith triggered the public debut of owner Bill Veeck’s biggest, baddest pinball machine — his $300,000 exploding scoreboard. Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 1 May 2025 Moore designed his pinball machine to complete the analogy to the Turing machine. Charlie Wood, Wired News, 6 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for pinball machine

Word History

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pinball machine was in 1936

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Cite this Entry

“Pinball machine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pinball%20machine. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

pinball machine

noun
pin·​ball machine
ˈpin-ˌbȯl-
: a game in which a ball shot by a plunger scores points as it rolls around a slanting surface among pins and targets

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