Word.ws English Dictionary

have the ball in one's court

have the ball in one's court is the alternative form of the ball is in someone's court.

Meaning of the ball is in someone's court

Phrase

the ball is in someone's court

  1. (idiomatic) It is someone's turn to do something; often making a decision.
    • Well there's not much more I can do, so the ball is in your court now.

Forms of have the ball in one's court

third-person singular presenthas the ball in one's court
present participlehaving the ball in one's court
past participlehad the ball in one's court
pasthad the ball in one's court

Questions about have the ball in one's court

What is have the ball in one's court the alternative form of?
Have the ball in one's court is the alternative form of the ball is in someone's court.

Words near have the ball in one's court in the dictionary

  1. have something over with
  2. have something to show for something
  3. have swallowed a dictionary
  4. have that shit on
  5. have the advantage of someone
  6. have the ball in one's court
  7. have the best of it
  8. have the biscuit
  9. have the black ox tread on one's foot
  10. have the blues
  11. have the cards

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: have the ball in one's court (page history and authors); the ball is in someone's court (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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