balling

See also: Balling and ballin'

English

Verb

balling

1. present participle and gerund of ball

Noun

balling (countable and uncountable, plural ballings)

1. Aggregation into clumps or balls;
   • 1875, Bernhard von Cotta, The Development Law of the Earth, page 7:

     As preceding the gaseous states, Faye accepts one of "dissolution," and as the cause of the local accumulation of matter and heat in space, he, like others, regards the balling of matter through gravitation, whereby immense motion is converted into heat .

   • 1897, Sporting Guns and Gunpowders, page 330:

     In other instances, where the blow on the cap was heavier, the flash was much longer and more powerful, and, if injected into a charge of very sensitive ntro, migh not improbably cause a balling of the shot .

   • 1947, R. C. Buehl, ‎E. P. Shoub, ‎J. P. Riott, Control of Sulfur Content of Sponge Iron Produced in Rotary Kilns, page 75:

     Little sticking or balling of the sponge iron occurred when this char was used as the reducing agent , and the sulfur content of the sponge iron ( 0.033 percent ) was lower than was generally obtained with the same ore and other reducing agents .

   • 1991, Henry William Spiegel, The Growth of Economic Thought, page 51:

     Beginning in the eleventh centruy we find a "balling" of peasants in the nearby villages and towns , from which they went to work in the more distantly located fields, a development that has its counterpart in ancient Greece as well as in modern times and that could only lift the level of civilization.

   • 2018, Bowen Li, ‎Jian Li, ‎Shadia Ikhmayies, Characterization of Minerals, Metals, and Materials, page 280:

     The balling of green pellets were carried out in the pelletizing disc with ф800 mm.

   • 2021, J. Paul Guyer, An Introduction to Engineering Concrete Structures, page 331:

     Segregation or balling of the fibers is related to several factors, the most important of which appears to be the aspect ratio.

2. The act of winding into a ball.
   • 1867, William Colborne Brookes, “A.D. 1866, 29th August. No 2228: Balling Wool, &c.”, in English Patents of Inventions, Specifications: 1866, 2187 - 2232:

     The balling of wool and other fibre is effected by winding on to pipes or tubes ordinarily formed of metal with small flanges at each end , and these pipes or tubes are supported between discs upon an axis to which the desired rotary motion is given for the formation of the balls.

   • 1878, Roméo Villain, “A.D. 1878, 7th February. No. 503: Machine for Winding up Threads of Flax, Wool, &c.”, in Specifications of Letters Patent for Inventions and Provisional Specifications, page 1:

     The machine which forms the object of the present application for Patent is destined to do the balling of threads of flax, wool, cotton, silk, or other textile material.

   • 2020, Sue Monk Kidd, The Book of Longings:

     What manner of man assists a woman with the balling of her yarn?

3. The act of curling up.
   • 1961, ‎Boris Gerasimovich Ananʹev, Psychological Science in the USSR, page 560:

     Thus, in the candy-wrapping shops of a confectionery factory (where the women workers are for a protracted period in a sitting position and carrying out small-scope hand motions), the physical exercises included in the P.T. break were slow, unforced bends and straightenings, balling of the fists of up- raised hands, and the like , whereas in the smelting shop of a metallurgy factory the P.T. break was held outdoors and consisted of exercises of the active recreational type bringing into play groups of muscles not exercised in the production work.

   • 1983, Emergency Medicine - Volume 15, Issues 13-16, page 178:

     […] balling of the muscle, may not be obvious on the first examination because of swelling but may appear on a second or third exam .

   • 2018, Ronnie Turner, Lies Between Us:

     A swift shift in expression, a bowing of her shoulders, a balling of her hands, lips thinning to pale strips of ribbon, fear-laden eyes locked on the floor, then suddenly skittering across the room as if searching for the source of a noise.

4. The act of wrapping something up.
   • 2023, Daniel S. Zahm, Anatomy of Neuropsychiatry, page 321:

     Even if we would like to think that we know something about these things, most of the brain's operations lurk veiled in mystery, wrapped in riddle, inside—well, you know (as I think Nauta did)...The allegorical balling of the cortical mantle cautions that all is not necessarily what it seems.

5. The act of cutting the roots (of a tree) about six inches from the stem, wrapping roots and soil in a sack, then tying the sack with twine.
   • 1910, Ralph E. Smith, Elizabeth H. Smith, “California Plant Diseases”, in Bulletin: College of Agriculture Agricultural Experiment Station - Issues 206-219, page 1121:

     These cases probably start in the majority of instances from an excessive flooding of the soil with water, put on either while the trees are growing to force them along or just before they are dug in order to assist the operation of "balling."

   • 1960 May, Sheldon A. Mix, “Flowers on the Production LIne”, in Popular Mechanics, volume 113, number 5, page 99:

     A Minnesota nurseryman invented the hydraulic balling machine, which has eliminated hand-balling of trees plucked out of the ground.

   • 1996, Louise Bush-Brown, ‎James Bush-Brown, ‎Howard S. Irwin, America's Garden Book, page 170:

     If it is too dry, the earth will crack away from the roots in balling or while moving.

6. The act or process of using a wrecking ball.
   • 1964, Construction Craftsman - Volumes 3-4, page 14:

     To do this, a temporary variance was obtained in the city's building codes, which forbid demolishing of buildings by balling .

   • 1966, Bulletin - Issue 277, page 48:

     Workers should not be allowed in any building area which can be adversely affected by these operations, nor should they be permitted in the barricaded area when balling is in progress.

   • 1994, L S Blake, Civil Engineer's Reference Book, pages 43-6:

     It may be necessary to remove roofs by hand prior to balling, and it is sometimes necessary to remove storeys to bring a building within the capacity of a balling machine.

7. (poultry) The accumulation of soil on the feet of a bird, a process that eventually leads to infection.
   • 1954, Poultry Disease Short Course for Veterinarians, June 28-30, 1954, page 24:

     the amount of milk sugar in the diet will be sufficiently high to produce flushing or at least a "balling" of the droppings on the feet of the birds.

   • 1904, F. W. Millard, “The Balling of Partridges”, in The Badminton Magazine of Sports and Pastimes, volume 19, page 31:

     I was once told by a well-known naturalist that the balling of partridges was a wise provision of nature for the dissemination of seeds , and by its aid plants are introduced to fresh ground ; but this is poor comfort to the man who sees his coveys gradually becoming fewer .

   • 1909, Pacific Rural Press - Volumes 77-78, page 156:

     Keeping the brooder and run clean and well sanded does away with the troublesome balling of the feet .

8. The accumulation of material such as snow or mud under the feet of a horse.
   • 1907 October 8, S.S. Cameron, “Diseases of Farm Animals”, in The Journal of Agriculture, volume 5, page 636:

     The most potent cause of thrush is exposure of the frogs to filth and damp. Neglect to remove the "balling" of horse dung or soiled bedding, tan, or sawdust from the shod foot is a fruitful source.

   • 1911, “Snow-Shoes for Horses”, in Cavalry Journal, volume 6, page 122:

     This is owing to the fact that the chilling of the horses' feet and shoes is severe and facilitates the balling of the snow.

   • 1914, Commercial Intelligence Journal, page 339:

     In connection with the treated felt, it may be mentioned that the material is found to be of special value as a filling for the hollow of horses' hoofs for snowy weather, whereby the balling of the snow is prevented .

9. The act of forcing a bolus of medicine down the throat of an animal.
   • 1869, M.R. James, “Care of Chicks in Brooder”, in American Agricultural Annual, page 94:

     The periodical bleeding and balling of horses should be likewise condemned .

   • 1890, United States. Bureau of Animal Industry, Special Report on Diseases of the Horse, page 10:

     We should always have a pail of water at hand to offer the horse after balling.

10. (beekeeping) An incident when worker bees surround a queen bee, usually leading to her death by suffocation or starvation.
    • 1986, Beowulf A. Cooper, ‎Philip Denwood, The Honeybees of the British Isles, page 145:

      Balling of queens seems to be relatively common in some strains of bee.

    • 2013, Yaacov Lensky, Pierre Cassier, “Alarm Pheromones of the Queen and Worker Honey Bees”, in Avshalom Mizrahi, ‎Yaacov Lensky, editor, Bee Products: Properties, Applications, and Apitherapy, page 152:

      The balling behaviour of workers has been explained by a "stress pheromone" hyphothesis: a disturbed queen produces a "stress pheromone" that stimulates an attack on her (balling) and her own death.

    • 2013, A Beekeeper's Guide to Rearing Queen Bees:

      The poetic fancy of Maeterlinck who, while he admits that "bees are not sentimental," will not allow the possibility of individual disloyalty in the hive, attributes the balling of the queen to a law which "invests her person, whoever she be, with a sort of inviolability," and prohibits the direct assault of any one bee:.

11. The process of firing ball-like projectiles.
    • 1890, William Pynchon, ‎Fitch Edward Oliver, The Diary of William Pynchon of Salem, page 25:

      Dr. Putnam received the discipline of snow balling as he passed the street.

    • 1901, Philharmonic: A Magazine Devoted to Music Art Drama, page 23:

      In order to emphasize the martial music, Director Gilmore had a balling of cannon that were fired electrically by pressing a set of white push-buttons on his desk .

    • 2013, Sarah Owen, The Complete Guide to Events Management, page 341:

      Alternatively you could do something rally crazy and participate in the new activities to 'trash your dress' that are being offered by companies where you wear your dress for activities such as point balling or monster truck driving and they take photos of you in your dress.

12. The act of scouring out a pipe or drain by forcing rocks or similar items through it with high-pressure water.
    • 1989, Proceedings [of The] Drilling Conference, page 128:

      For this test series balling was initiated by trying a variety of rocks and by running at different levels of hydraulic horsepower per square inch of bottom hole area ( HSI ) .

    • 2003, Operation and Maintenance of Wastewater Collection Systems:

      Usually a balling operation will function very well with 2.0 feet of head in the upstream manhole to create a scouring velocity around the ball.

13. The measurement on a hydrometer of the amount of sugar in a liquid.
    • 1930, The Federal Reporter, page 341:

      In the next place, the defendant contrasts the dilution of Hayduck, which has a balling of about 1°, with the concentration of the dilute portion of the peptone wort of mash 1901, which had a balling of .8 °.

    • 1956, West Punjab Fruit Journal - Volumes 20-22, page 17:

      Fruit and syrup of 20°, 30° balling was found to be insipid and sour. The product was excellent syrup and in its own juice with equal in 40 and 45 degree ballings.

    • 2017, George M. Walker & John Peragine, Cucamonga Valley Wine: The Lost Empire of American Winemaking, page 48:

      Zinfandel grapes were a stable grape for shipping. They had a balling of 24 (sugar content) which made a 12 percent alcohol wine, which was great for home winemakers.

14. Synonym of sexual intercourse.
    • 2011, Eric Berne, Sex in Human Loving, page v:

      A very wise girl named Amaryllis once said to me "I like cuffing, but I don't want a boy who will swerk me just for the glory of it." Balling is something people do together too.

    • 2020, Jack Olsen, The Girls on the Campus, page 179:

      Sometimes balling just seems to be something that you just want to get over with, so you can start talking, but the man always leaves.

    • 2023, Mike Marinacci, Psychedelic Cults and Outlaw Churches:

      You know the bond, the thing that tied us up together was surfing and dope and balling [sex].

Derived terms

• antiballing
• balling gun
• balling-iron

 

Adjective

balling (not comparable)

1. Involving casual sexual intercourse.
   • 1980, Patricia J. Bush, Drugs, Alcohol, & Sex:

     Ideal for a balling hot time .

   • 2012, Mario Puzo, Fools Die, page 227:

     And as Doran said later, all bullshit aside, what balling broad could resist going to bed with a handsome dwarf ?

   • 2012, Bernard W. Bell, Bearing Witness to African American Literature, page 150:

     Having prayed "for a tallish, not too much belly, brown-skinned, slow-smiling man with big hands and clean, neat fingernails [...] who wouldn't argue about wearing a johnny," Kassima not only found her a "nice man" but she and Jones also had “a balling good time and started seeing each other regular” (50).

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch ballinc, assimilated from banlinc, which consists of ban +‎ -linc. Doublet of banneling.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɑ.lɪŋ/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: bal‧ling

Noun

balling m (plural ballingen, diminutive ballinkje n)

1. exile (exiled person)

Synonyms

• banneling

Derived terms

• ballingschap