softball

[sawft-bawl, soft-] /ˈsɔftˌbɔl, ˈsɒft-/
noun
1.
a form of baseball played on a smaller diamond with a larger and softer, ball.
2.
the ball itself.
3.
something that can be easily dealt with:
The confirmation committee threw her a softball on that question.
Origin
1925-30; soft + ball1
Examples from the web for softball
  • The other unromantic moment came with what also should have been a softball, or a soft satellite: the moon base.
  • He would have seen three generations of males and females playing softball in the field next to the old high school.
  • softball leagues run in the spring, summer, and fall months.
  • softball leagues are run at many sites throughout the county.
British Dictionary definitions for softball

softball

/ˈsɒftˌbɔːl/
noun
1.
a variation of baseball using a larger softer ball, pitched underhand
2.
the ball used
3.
(cookery) the stage in the boiling of a sugar syrup at which it may be rubbed into balls after dipping in cold water
Word Origin and History for softball
n.

baseball of larger than usual size, used in a scaled-down version of the game, 1914, from soft + ball (n.1). The game itself so called from 1926, earlier known as playground baseball. The word earlier was a term in sugar candy making (1894). Softball question, one that is easy to answer, is attested from 1976.

Slang definitions & phrases for softball

softball

adjective

Trivial and contemptible; nonserious: a softball question if ever there was one/ This softball performance by Democrats on the Judiciary Committee in the Thomas hearings left many in a huge TV audience wondering what legitimate claim to national power this bumbling crowd could possibly have

[1970s+; based on hardball]