play ball

phrase

Synonyms of play ballnext
: cooperate

Examples of play ball in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
For Moscow, though, the deals, the incentives, and even the shared disdain for Kyiv are not seen as a cue to play ball and back down, but as a sign that its US strategy is yielding results. — Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 21 Oct. 2026 Alou reacted demonstrably, and the Marlins went on to score eight runs in the inning, sending 12 batters to the plate, as Cubs shortstop Alex Gonzalez botched a routine double-play ball. — Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 14 Oct. 2026 Boo your front office too, Braves fans, for not wanting to play ball with Freeman. — Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026 Later in the first, Chisholm also threw a potential double-play ball high. — Ryan Morik Outkick, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for play ball

Rhymes for play ball

See All Rhymes for play ball

Browse Nearby Words

play back
play ball
playbill
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Play ball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/play%20ball. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on play ball

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for play ball

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of milieu

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All