1
as in spheres
a more or less round body or mass
the little rubber ball used in racquetball a ball of string
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bullets
a usually round or cone-shaped little piece of lead made to be fired from a firearm
found a cache of musket balls while excavating the old fort
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dances
a social gathering for dancing
a ball to celebrate the inauguration
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of balls
Thomas Drance, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2026
Federal agents have launched less lethal munitions, including pepper balls, tear gas, pepper spray, and flashbangs at protesters, according to CNN.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 15 Jan. 2026
The Total 90 brand has also included indoor soccer shoes, turf shoes, soccer balls and other soccer products, and, through a Nike-Electronic Arts partnership, has appeared in FIFA and FC soccer video game franchises.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Jan. 2026
In baseball, balls are called strikes.
—Harvey Levine, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
Beyond the lion-roaring ping-pong balls, though, there’s another key sequence where Lievsay and the sound team had an animal to track.
—Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 14 Jan. 2026
How to play the Powerball To play, select five numbers from 1 to 69 for the white balls, then select one number from 1 to 26 for the red Powerball.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 14 Jan. 2026
After dough has rested, roll into balls and arrange on baking sheet.
—Heather Riske, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Jan. 2026
The Patriots will meet strength with strength in this area, after Maye completed the second-most deep balls in the NFL and finished as the league’s best deep thrower by passer rating.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
Kristi Scales
jan. 5, Dallas Morning News, 5 Jan. 2026
Place balls 3 inches apart on 3 large baking sheets lined with parchment paper (about 12 cookies per sheet).
—Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 27 Nov. 2025
Arrange the dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
—Elizabeth Fogarty, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Oct. 2025
Defense overall just balls Two.
—Miami Herald, 26 Oct. 2025
Noun
Rebuilding efforts can also be delayed by the bounces of lottery balls, a bust pick, organizational impatience, a key devastating injury and the like.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2026
Federal agents have launched less lethal munitions, including pepper balls, tear gas, pepper spray, and flashbangs at protesters, according to CNN.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 15 Jan. 2026
The Total 90 brand has also included indoor soccer shoes, turf shoes, soccer balls and other soccer products, and, through a Nike-Electronic Arts partnership, has appeared in FIFA and FC soccer video game franchises.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Jan. 2026
In baseball, balls are called strikes.
—Harvey Levine, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
Beyond the lion-roaring ping-pong balls, though, there’s another key sequence where Lievsay and the sound team had an animal to track.
—Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 14 Jan. 2026
How to play the Powerball To play, select five numbers from 1 to 69 for the white balls, then select one number from 1 to 26 for the red Powerball.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 14 Jan. 2026
After dough has rested, roll into balls and arrange on baking sheet.
—Heather Riske, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Jan. 2026
The Patriots will meet strength with strength in this area, after Maye completed the second-most deep balls in the NFL and finished as the league’s best deep thrower by passer rating.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
Verb
Each team received their shipment of logo balls several weeks ago from the Wilson factory so that equipment managers would be able to properly prepare the footballs for their respective offenses.
—Kristi Scales
jan. 5, Dallas Morning News, 5 Jan. 2026
Place balls 3 inches apart on 3 large baking sheets lined with parchment paper (about 12 cookies per sheet).
—Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 27 Nov. 2025
Arrange the dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
—Elizabeth Fogarty, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Oct. 2025
Defense overall just balls Two.
—Miami Herald, 26 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for balls
Verb
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London, Dubai, Hanoi, and Paris also made the list, while New York City rounds out the top 10 and also gains recognition for its culture, food, and solo travel opportunities.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Michelle Nolden rounds out the new cast of characters as Dean, who will appear in at least one episode.—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
From rugged descents through pine forests to flowy singletrack that rolls through meadows, there’s a trail for every ability.—
Jen Murphy,
Outside,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Add a spicy twist to homemade pizzas, breads, calzones, and rolls with this ready-to-bake dough that includes bits of jalapeño peppers.—
Michele Laufik,
Martha Stewart,
6 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Balls.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/balls. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
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