ballpark figure

noun

"ballpark-figure" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ballpark figure” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
15
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An educated guess or estimation within acceptable bounds.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ballpark-figure · ballpark figure · English

ballpark figure · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 15 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "B" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for ballpark figure
PropertyValue
Headwordballpark figure
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters15
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “ballpark figure” sits in English frequency

ballpark figure falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ballpark figure is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An educated guess or estimation within acceptable bounds.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for ballpark figure, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: Operating on the themes discussed at in the ballpark § Etymology. The correct English form is ballpark figure, spelled B-A-L-L-P-A-R-K- -F-I-G-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An educated guess or estimation within acceptable bounds.

Etymology

Operating on the themes discussed at in the ballpark § Etymology.

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "ballpark figure"?
"ballpark figure" is spelled B-A-L-L-P-A-R-K- -F-I-G-U-R-E.
What does "ballpark figure" mean?
As a noun, "ballpark figure" means: An educated guess or estimation within acceptable bounds.
What is the origin of the word "ballpark figure"?
Operating on the themes discussed at in the ballpark § Etymology. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.
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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list