spitball
verb
spitballed; spitballing
informal
: to propose (ideas, suggestions, etc.) for consideration in an informal, preliminary way
Writers spitballed story ideas; editors dreamed up coverage …—
Nick Summers
Nick SummersHe has his finger on every facet of the concert presentation, using rehearsals to tweak the visuals and spitball new ideas.—Marshall Fine
Marshall FineLinklater, Coltrane, and Hawke had started spitballing dialogue a year earlier, though they'd begun anticipating the scene years before that.—Nathan Heller
Nathan Heller… it's probably a little late for Vance Joseph and his coaching staff to be spitballing on what kind of team they want the Broncos to be.—Mark Kiszla
Mark KiszlaExamples of spitball in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
So Jones, who is 6-foot-7, and his crew started to spitball.
—Brendan Kuty, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2026
Shift your mindset from commands to conversations and try using AI to spitball new ideas for that next big project.
—Alex Fitzpatrick, Axios, 9 Mar. 2025
The experience has sparked conversations about conservation, and the group sometimes spitballs potential solutions.
—Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 2 Feb. 2025
Shortly after arriving home, a knock at her door reveals Aubrey Plaza’s agent Rio Vidal is there to spitball about the case.
—Katie Campione, Deadline, 18 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for spitball
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Brendan Kuty, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2026
Shift your mindset from commands to conversations and try using AI to spitball new ideas for that next big project.
—Alex Fitzpatrick, Axios, 9 Mar. 2025
The experience has sparked conversations about conservation, and the group sometimes spitballs potential solutions.
—Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 2 Feb. 2025
Shortly after arriving home, a knock at her door reveals Aubrey Plaza’s agent Rio Vidal is there to spitball about the case.
—Katie Campione, Deadline, 18 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for spitball
Cite this Entry
“Spitball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spitball. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spitball
noun
spit·ball
ˈspit-ˌbȯl 
1
: paper chewed and rolled into a ball to be thrown or shot at someone or something
2
: a baseball pitch thrown after the ball has been moistened with spit or sweat
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