throw (someone) a curve/curveball
idiom
: to present (someone) with a difficult and unexpected problem, situation, question, etc.
The reporter threw the candidate a curve by asking about his past drug use.
Recently, Mother Nature threw us a curveball in the form of a 50-degree day in the middle of January.—
Molly Cavanaugh
Molly CavanaughThe sea will throw you a lot of curves, so versatile navigation gear is a must.—Advertisement
AdvertisementExamples of throw (someone) a curve/curveball in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Bosses, parents, teachers and the police — all authority figures — might suddenly throw a curveball at you.
—Georgia Nicols, The Denver Post, 24 Nov. 2024
Fate didn’t throw a curveball at Justin Hillman when he was born.
—Jeff Vorva, Chicago Tribune, 1 Aug. 2023
Why not throw a curve into your garden with a round garden bed?
—Renee Freemon Mulvihill, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Mar. 2023
But throw a curveball, and the opposite side bulges out to catch.
—Yoni Heisler, BGR, 20 Sep. 2022
Nature can throw a curve ball; nothing is guaranteed.
—oregonlive, 21 Mar. 2022
The public health threat from variants could throw a curveball into the recovery.
—Dallas News, 23 June 2021
The purpose is to throw a curveball at artificial intelligence agents that play the game.
—Mayank Kejriwal, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2021
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Georgia Nicols, The Denver Post, 24 Nov. 2024
Fate didn’t throw a curveball at Justin Hillman when he was born.
—Jeff Vorva, Chicago Tribune, 1 Aug. 2023
Why not throw a curve into your garden with a round garden bed?
—Renee Freemon Mulvihill, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Mar. 2023
But throw a curveball, and the opposite side bulges out to catch.
—Yoni Heisler, BGR, 20 Sep. 2022
Nature can throw a curve ball; nothing is guaranteed.
—oregonlive, 21 Mar. 2022
The public health threat from variants could throw a curveball into the recovery.
—Dallas News, 23 June 2021
The purpose is to throw a curveball at artificial intelligence agents that play the game.
—Mayank Kejriwal, The Conversation, 7 Apr. 2021
Dictionary Entries Near throw (someone) a curve/curveball
throw (someone) a curve/curveball
Cite this Entry
“Throw (someone) a curve/curveball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/throw%20%28someone%29%20a%20curve%2Fcurveball. Accessed 31 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share