Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun US A game similar to baseball, played with a lightweight bat and ball and suitable for children to play in confined areas. Also the ball used in that game.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From (onomatopoeia) whiff ("to strike, to strikeout") + ball.

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word wiffleball.

Examples

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • Wiffleball or whiffleball is a variation of the sport of baseball designed for indoor or outdoor play in confined areas. "Wiffle" is a registered trademark of The Wiffle Ball, Inc., which manufactures Wiffle balls from its location in Shelton, Connecticut. It is played using a perforated, light-weight, plastic ball and a long, plastic (typically yellow) bat, generally on a triangular playing field.

    The Wiffle ball was invented by David N. Mullany of Fairfield, Connecticut in 1953 when he designed a ball that curved easily for his 12-year old son. It was named when his son and his friends would refer to a strikeout as a "wiff" (actually whiff). A classic Wiffle ball is about the same size as a regulation baseball and is hollow plastic no more than 1/8th of an inch thick. One hemisphere is perforated with eight 3/4" inch oblong holes, with a solid second hemisphere. Wiffle balls are typically packaged with a hollow, hard plastic, yellow bat that measures 31 inches (790 mm) in length and about 1.25 inches in diameter.

    _Wikipedia

    Also refers to the game played with a Wiffleball and bat.

    February 3, 2008