ball and chain

B b

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [bawl and cheyn]
- /bɔl ænd tʃeɪn/
- /bɔːl ənd tʃeɪn/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [bawl and cheyn]
- /bɔl ænd tʃeɪn/

Definitions of ball and chain words

noun ball and chain (formerly) a heavy iron ball attached to a chain and fastened to a prisoner 3
noun ball and chain a heavy restraint 3
noun ball and chain a wife 3
noun ball and chain a metal ball fastened by a chain to a prisoner's body to prevent escape 3
noun ball and chain a heavy iron ball fastened by a chain to a prisoner's leg. 1
noun ball and chain a burdensome restraint: The steady accumulation of small debts was a ball and chain to his progress. 1

See all 10 definitions of ball and chain

Information block about the term

Origin of ball and chain

First appearance:

before 1825

One of the 37% newest English words

An Americanism dating back to 1825-35

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Ball and chain

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Ball and chain

ball and chain popularity

This term is known only to a narrow circle of people with rare knowledge. Only 6% of English native speakers know the meaning of this word.

According to our data most of word are more popular. This word is almost not used. It has a much more popular synonym.

ball and chain usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for ball and chain

noun ball and chain

girlfriend — a frequent or favorite female companion; sweetheart.
old lady — a mother, usually one's own.
wife — a married woman, especially when considered in relation to her partner in marriage.
little woman — Used other than as an idiom: see little,‎ woman.
old woman — elderly lady

All 5 Synonyms of ball and chain

Matching words

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