wrecking ball

noun

: a heavy iron or steel ball swung or dropped by a derrick to demolish old buildings

called also wrecker's ball

Examples of wrecking ball in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

The pinballs have been saved from the wrecking ball, says the Facebook page of Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum. —

Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 10 Dec. 2024 Might be time to run plays away from the one-man wrecking ball. —

Matt Schubert, The Denver Post, 24 Nov. 2024 Similarly, Trump has promised to take a wrecking ball to virtually all of President Joe Biden’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions and accelerate the shift away from fossil fuels. —

Sophie Tanno, CNN, 1 Dec. 2024 Grotesque inequalities of income, wealth, opportunity, and power have caused most Americans to feel angry, surly, cynical, and ready to take a wrecking ball to the whole system. —

Robert B. Reich, Hartford Courant, 26 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for wrecking ball

Word History

First Known Use

1924, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of wrecking ball was in 1924

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Wrecking ball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wrecking%20ball. Accessed 18 Dec. 2024.

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