play ball

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

This is playoff basketball — grow up and play ball.

From Los Angeles Times • May 9, 2026

"And they'd all got the memo to play ball and deliver an opening episode full of sizzling chemistry, cheeky banter and decent anecdotes," she wrote.

From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026

Current and former officials said that Russia’s increasing reliance on China means Beijing could play a productive role in bringing Putin to any peace deal—if Trump can convince it to play ball, that is.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 13, 2025

And there’s the whole other theme here where it would appear that Adams was coached by Bove to essentially offer: I’ll really play ball on immigration if you’ll dismiss the cases.

From Slate • Feb. 14, 2025

See, when I play ball, I’m on fire.

From "The Crossover" by Kwame Alexander