softball

noun

soft·​ball ˈsȯf(t)-ˌbȯl 

1

: a sport similar to baseball played on a small diamond with a ball that is larger than a baseball and that is pitched underhand

also : the ball used in this game

2

: a question requiring only an easy or simple response

softballer

ˈsȯf(t)-ˌbȯ-lər 

noun

Examples of softball in a Sentence

Do you want to play softball?

All the questions in the interview were softballs.

Recent Examples on the Web

And does Nebraska’s softball team really need to be playing at Rutgers? —Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2025

Mattingly being kicked off a fictional softball team for refusing to shave his sideburns. —Chris Kirschner, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025

Don Mattingly, the Yankees’ star first baseman of the 1980s and early '90s, voiced himself in that episode when his character was thrown off a company softball team by plant owner Montgomery Burns for allegedly sporting sideburns. —David K. Li, NBC News, 21 Feb. 2025

Norco 10, Murrieta Mesa 1: In a battle between two of the top softball teams in the Southland, Norco prevailed behind Ashley Duran and Dillyn Eckenrod, both of whom hit home runs. —Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1867, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for softball

• aldol
• armhole
• atoll
• awol
• backhaul
• banal
• baseball
• befall
• cabal
• catchall
• cecal
• centrale

Kids Definition

softball

noun

soft·​ball ˈsȯf(t)-ˌbȯl 

: baseball played on a small diamond with a ball that is larger than a baseball and that is pitched underhand

also : the ball used in this game