ball up
Idioms-
Roll something into a ball, as in She loved to knit and was always balling up her yarn . [Early 1800s]
-
Confuse or bungle, as in Jane got all balled up at the beginning of her speech , or Henry really balled up that exam . This term may come from the fact that when a horse is driven over soft or partly thawed snow, the snow becomes packed into icy balls on its hoofs, making it stumble. Another theory is that it alludes to the vulgar term balls for testicles. [First half of 1900s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He is good in the air, he can hold the ball up well, he can defend and he can finish.
From BBC
He hit superb lines, either hitting the ball up bravely into the heart of Wales defence or acting as a decoy, and worked instinctively with Northampton team-mate Fraser Dingwall inside him at 12.
From BBC
I ball up the paper and tear out a new sheet.
From Literature
They did not hold enough balls up, or give enough options in behind.
From BBC
"Obviously it starts on defense. We played faster, we didn't walk the ball up. At the end of fourth and overtime we executed."
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
