ball game
/ˈbɔːl ˌɡeɪm/
"ball-game" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“ball game” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any game played with a ball.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | ball game |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈbɔːl ˌɡeɪm/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “ball game” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for ball game is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbɔːl ˌɡeɪm/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No generated misspelling entries exist for ball game in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct English form is ball game, spelled B-A-L-L- -G-A-M-E.
Definition
- 1Any game played with a ball.
- 2A specific contest or match between teams playing such a game, in particular a baseball game.
- 3A sport played in the Aztec and Mayan civilizations; Mesoamerican ballgame.
- 4Affair, issue, matter, subject, story, topic.
- 5A decisive outcome in regard to some ongoing situation; game over.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “ball game”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-A-L-L- -G-A-M-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈbɔːl ˌɡeɪm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.