curveball

noun

curve·​ball ˈkərv-ˌbȯl 

: a slow or moderately fast baseball pitch thrown with spin to make it swerve downward and usually to the left when thrown from the right hand or to the right when thrown from the left hand

curveball verb

Examples of curveball in a Sentence

The batter struck out on a curveball.

Recent Examples on the Web

Snell then struck out Sean Murphy to end the inning, finishing the at-bat with three straight curveballs for strikes. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026

When Schlittler came out firing a curveball, a young group of Red Sox hitters was paralyzed, unable to adjust. — Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2026

The mighty nor’easter that’s expected to rock the East Coast all the weekend threw a curveball to the Yankees, whose game on Saturday night was preemptively rescheduled for Friday as part of a single-admission doubleheader. — Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 25 Sep. 2026

The heater should pair well with his signature sinker, curveball and slider. — Kansas City Star, 24 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing curveball

• throw (someone) a curve/curveball

Rhymes for curveball

• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• basketball
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• cortisol
• ethanol
• fireball
• gasohol
• gossypol