Ball \Ball\ (b[add]l), n. [OE. bal, balle; akin to OHG. balla,
palla, G. ball, Icel. b["o]llr, ball; cf. F. balle. Cf. 1st
Bale, n., Pallmall.]
1. Any round or roundish body or mass; a sphere or globe; as,
a ball of twine; a ball of snow.
2. A spherical body of any substance or size used to play
with, as by throwing, knocking, kicking, etc.
3. A general name for games in which a ball is thrown,
kicked, or knocked. See Baseball, and Football.
4. Any solid spherical, cylindrical, or conical projectile of
lead or iron, to be discharged from a firearm; as, a
cannon ball; a rifle ball; -- often used collectively; as,
powder and ball. Spherical balls for the smaller firearms
are commonly called bullets.
5. (Pyrotechnics & Mil.) A flaming, roundish body shot into
the air; a case filled with combustibles intended to burst
and give light or set fire, or to produce smoke or stench;
as, a fire ball; a stink ball.
6. (Print.) A leather-covered cushion, fastened to a handle
called a ballstock; -- formerly used by printers for
inking the form, but now superseded by the roller.
7. A roundish protuberant portion of some part of the body;
as, the ball of the thumb; the ball of the foot.
8. (Far.) A large pill, a form in which medicine is commonly
given to horses; a bolus. --White.
9. The globe or earth. --Pope.
Move round the dark terrestrial ball. --Addison.
Ball and socket joint, a joint in which a ball moves within
a socket, so as to admit of motion in every direction
within certain limits.
Ball bearings, a mechanical device for lessening the
friction of axle bearings by means of small loose metal
balls.
Ball cartridge, a cartridge containing a ball, as
distinguished from a blank cartridge, containing only
powder.
Ball cock, a faucet or valve which is opened or closed by
the fall or rise of a ball floating in water at the end of
a lever.
Ball gudgeon, a pivot of a spherical form, which permits
lateral deflection of the arbor or shaft, while retaining
the pivot in its socket. --Knight.
Ball lever, the lever used in a ball cock.
Ball of the eye, the eye itself, as distinguished from its
lids and socket; -- formerly, the pupil of the eye.
Ball valve (Mach.), a contrivance by which a ball, placed
in a circular cup with a hole in its bottom, operates as a
valve.
Ball vein (Mining), a sort of iron ore, found in loose
masses of a globular form, containing sparkling particles.
Three balls, or Three golden balls, a pawnbroker's sign
or shop.
Syn: See Globe.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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