pinball

Everyday

1. An arcade game in which you shoot a metal ball up a sloping table and use flippers to keep it bouncing off targets to score points. tree →
2. (verb, informal) To bounce quickly from one place to another: «The ball pinballed around the box.» tree →

In the lessons

Everyday games word: pinball machines are found in arcades, cafes and on computers. In science lessons it can illustrate forces, slopes and bouncing (collisions). Sports commentators say a ball «pinballed» around the penalty area.

Examples

• We played pinball at the arcade on the pier. tree →
• Press the buttons to move the flippers in pinball. tree →
• I got a high score on the pinball machine. tree →
• The ball went pinballing between the defenders. tree →
• Pinball machines use springs, slopes and magnets. tree →
• Gravity pulls the pinball down the table. tree →

Note

Uncountable as a game (play pinball); countable as a machine (two pinball machines). One word. The verb «pinball» is informal.