yourself a lot have something/a lot on
the 'ball (US, informal) to be capable of
doing a job very well; to be intelligent H?
(be) on the 'ball
to be aware of and
understand what is happening and able to react quickly ifc ; $fl : The new publicity
manager is really on the
ball.
§Hia#
play 'ball (with sb) (informal) to be willing to work
with other people in a helpful way, especially so that sb can get what they
want ( the whole ball
of 'wax (NAmE, informal) the whole thing; everything I
panicked, I cried—the whole ball of
wax.nm^m, „
— more at carry v., drop
v., eye n.
m
verb 1 to form sth or be
formed into the shape of a ball ilfc : [V]
Her hands balled into fists.
M3X.¥-Ji#o 0 [VN] My hands were balled
into fists. ffcJE AA1§A#Ao 2 [VN]
(NAmE, taboo, slang) (of a man) to have sex with a woman ( ) fP ( £14 ) SCM
bal lad /'basted/ noun
1 a song or poem that tells a story Kig:
a medieval ballad about a
knight and a lady —
2 a slow popular song about love ( £#^1#W )
Her latest single is a ballad.
ft.
bal-lad-eer /.baete'dia(r); NAmE
-'dir/ noun a person who sings or writes ballads fa
*###
'ballad opera noun a type of play,
popular in
.ball-and-'socket joint noun (anatomy a joint such as the
hip joint, in which a ball-shaped part moves inside a curved hollow part ; #0^1$
bal last /'baetest/ noun
[U] 1 heavy material placed in a ship or hot-air balloon to make it heavier and keep it steady (
$} 2 a layer of stones that makes a strong base on which a
road, railway/railroad, etc. can be built (
ball bearing
.ball 'bearing noun a ring of small metal
balls used in a machine to enable the parts to turn smoothly; one of these
small metal balls
ball-boy /'boilboi/ noun
a boy who picks up the balls for the players in a tennis match ( )
Jjclt
— see also ballgirl
'ball-breaker noun (informal) a sexually aggressive
woman who destroys men’s confidence ( J§ T MW
) £14® ►'ball-breaking adj. ball-cock /'boilknk; NAmE
-ka:k/ noun a device with a floating ball that controls the amount of
water going into a container, for example the water tank of a toilet
is; nmm
bal ler ina /.baete'riina/ noun
a female dancer in ballet [£;|f
f|£$| — see also prima ballerina
bal-let /'baelei/ noun 1
[U] a style of dancing that tells a dramatic story with music but no
talking or singing gHH: She wants to be a ballet dancer.
®
ji| o O ballet shoes i^LiSflf H 2 [C] a
story or work of art performed by a group of ballet dancers Jg(|:
‘