How to Use curveball in a Sentence

curveball

noun
Definition of curveballnext
  • The batter struck out on a curveball.
  • But baseball can be a fickle game, and the fates can spin faster than the best curveball.
    — Creg Stephenson | Cstephenson@al.com, al, 27 Oct. 2021
  • Miu Miu, of course, is well-known for its curveball casting choices.
    — Hayley Maitland, Vogue, 1 Oct. 2024
  • Janet Dunne made peace a long time ago with the awful curveball life threw her in 1968.
    — John Wilkens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Nov. 2021
  • But hours later, the Dudley family was thrown a curveball.
    — Helena Oliviero, ajc, 19 Nov. 2021
  • Pivetta has a four-seam fastball, curveball, and slider with a changeup on occasion.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 30 Oct. 2021
  • By letting go, Mowry-Housley has learned to be more accepting of every curveball that comes her way.
    — Maggie O'Neill, Health.com, 29 Nov. 2021
  • Kelly Clarkson Show, in a true curveball from her usual Kellyoke fare.
    — Justin Curto, Vulture, 11 Nov. 2021
  • Uland, 65, was thrown a curveball nearly seven years ago when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 skin cancer.
    — Kyle Neddenriep, The Indianapolis Star, 12 Nov. 2021
  • What are those hard questions, uncomfortable objections or curveball concerns that have a tendency to make your prospects go cold?
    — Sean O'Neal, Forbes, 8 Nov. 2021
  • Expect anything from rabbit leg, mushroom ragout, and leek soup with pear to curveball desserts such as pumpkin mousse, marshmallow ice cream, and caramel popcorn.
    — Nicola Leigh Stewart, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Nov. 2021
  • Mexico threw a curveball by featuring McNairy as the man providing the voice-over.
    — Derek Lawrence, EW.com, 3 Nov. 2021
  • The new rule requires a negative test within one day of travel instead of three days before takeoff, throwing a curveball at travelers already abroad.
    — Scott McCartney, WSJ, 8 Dec. 2021
  • Improving his command will make his secondary pitches, including his curveball, more effective.
    — Joe Noga, cleveland, 30 Nov. 2021
  • Maggie experiences success at work and in love; Gary needs to let go of things from his past; Rome fields a curveball with his movie; Regina has her own drama to deal with.
    — Washington Post, 3 Nov. 2021
  • The one-two pitch on the way: curveball, tapped foul off to the left of the plate.
    — Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2023
  • The truth is, any time of the year can throw me a migraine curveball.
    — Natasha Lavender, SELF, 11 Mar. 2022
  • The first curveball of the sequence was well outside to run the count full.
    — Peter Abraham, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Nov. 2022
  • More of those curveballs Neville talked about loom on the horizon.
    — Bryce Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Dec. 2023
  • Urquidy’s first pitch to Trout that day at Minute Maid Park was a curveball.
    — Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2022
  • Reyes turned on a 1-and-1 curveball, sending it over the wall in left field.
    — Tim Withers, Hartford Courant, 3 July 2022
  • With two on and one out, Mantiply tried to go down and away with a 1-2 curveball.
    — Nick Piecoro, The Arizona Republic, 25 June 2022
  • Jefferies tried a curveball and a 96 mph sinker that missed.
    — Matt Kawahara, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Apr. 2022
  • In the first inning, Stephenson hit a first pitch curveball to drive in a run.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 11 May 2022
  • And his curveball/changeup mix might be the best mix of secondary stuff in the system.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas News, 14 Mar. 2023
  • With his 98th pitch, a curveball in the dirt, Snell ended the sixth inning with his 10th strikeout of the game.
    — Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2024
  • Watching Tebow try to hit Triple A curveballs was more fun than this.
    — Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Aug. 2023
  • In the 10th, Ketel Marte struck out looking on a curveball that appeared to miss the bottom of the zone.
    — Theo MacKie, The Arizona Republic, 16 May 2023
  • Good thing Davis knows how to handle a curveball or two.
    — Sandra Gonzalez, CNN, 24 June 2022
  • Life is going to throw you (and your business) some curveballs.
    — Colin C. Campbell, Forbes, 9 Sep. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'curveball.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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