Make Your Point > Archived Issues > PINBALL
Send Make Your Point issues straight to your inbox.
pronounce
PINBALL:
Say it
"PIN ball."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
Can you think of a word for people who bounce around from place to place, as if without a permanent home? They're n____ic.
And can you think of a word for people who bounce around from place to place, often joyfully, because they adore traveling and seeing the world? They have w_______st.
And today, a word for people who bounce around from place to place, as if they're marbles in an arcade game: they're pinballs.
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
definition:
From Slim Jim Studios, here's a pinball game:
Although "pinball" first meant "pincushion," by 1911 it also meant "a game played by knocking marbles around." In the game, traditionally, all the little traps and targets are marked with pins, which is why it's called pinball. And of course, the word "pinball" can also refer to one of the marbles.
If you get figurative and call someone or something a pinball, you mean it's somebody or something that gets knocked around from here and there in a random way. And if you refer to a situation as pinball, you mean it involves that kind of motion.
You can also use "pinball" as a verb. To pinball is to get knocked around here and there in a random way.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech: both a noun ("he's a pinball") and a verb ("the company keeps pinballing him from role to role").
Other forms: pinballs, pinballed, pinballing.
how to use it:
When you refer to things or people as pinballs, or when you say that they pinball (or pinball around, pinball across some place, or pinball from place to place, etc.), you're saying that they're bonking or whizzing randomly around, with very little in the way of plans or control.
So, it's a fun and colorful metaphor, with a slightly negative tone.
Although you most often use "pinball" as a noun or a verb, you can also use it as an adjective: "pinball energy" (New York Times), "pinball politics" (BBC).
examples:
"Many’s the time I’ve walked with her on a London sidewalk. As I pinball about, dodging the oncoming crowd — right, center, left — I look over to see her locomoting resolutely in her lane, as determined as a salmon swimming against the stream."
— John Kelly, Washington Post, 10 July 2019
"Jayshree Seth rose to corporate scientist precisely because she was allowed to pinball around different technological domains. Staying in one technical lane isn't her thing."
— David Epstein, Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, 2019
has this page helped you understand "pinball"?
study it:
Explain the meaning of "pinball" without saying "something that gets shuffled all over the place" or "ricochet."
try it out:
The New York Times said this about Joe Biden:
"Never known for his discipline, the former vice president is entering a media environment unlike that in his first two presidential campaigns; now his every misstep will immediately pinball across the internet."
Yup! But we could say the same about anyone, right? Talk about another famous person whose missteps immediately pinball--and how, and why.
before you review, play:
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
Our game this month is "Subject Line Crosswords."
We'll revisit some of the email subject lines from 2019 issues, using them as a tool for recall.
Each day this month, see if you can complete the mini-crossword with words we studied last year. If you need extra clues, look below the puzzle to view definitions and parts of speech. And I'll share the answers in the following issue. Enjoy!
From the previous issue:
Extra clues:
ACROSS
2. adjective meaning "able to 'see' things with superhuman clarity"
3. adjective meaning "extremely high or tall"
DOWN
1. adjective meaning "seeming to roam from place to place"
Answers:
If you like, you can review the words clairvoyant, skyscraping, and nomadic.
Try this today:
Extra clues:
ACROSS
2. noun or adjective meaning "(someone who is) cold, hard, overbearing, and way too focused on facts, especially numbers"
3. noun meaning "an uncertain state or status, usually somewhere in between two well-defined states"
DOWN
1. noun meaning "anything that seems so large, so impressive, and so solid and permanent that it reminds you of a grand building"
review this word:
A. STATUE.
B. CLUSTER.
C. FREESTYLE.
2. The Pinballs, by Betsy Byars, is about _____ gaining a sense of _____.
A. scientists .. faith
B. foster children .. self-determination
C. privileged teenagers .. gratitude and humility
a final word:
I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love.
I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.
From my blog:
36 ways to study words.
Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.
Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.
Can you think of a word for people who bounce around from place to place, as if without a permanent home? They're n____ic. From Slim Jim Studios, here's a pinball game:
Part of speech: both a noun ("he's a pinball") and a verb ("the company keeps pinballing him from role to role").
When you refer to things or people as pinballs, or when you say that they pinball (or pinball around, pinball across some place, or pinball from place to place, etc.), you're saying that they're bonking or whizzing randomly around, with very little in the way of plans or control.
"Many’s the time I’ve walked with her on a London sidewalk. As I pinball about, dodging the oncoming crowd — right, center, left — I look over to see her locomoting resolutely in her lane, as determined as a salmon swimming against the stream."
Explain the meaning of "pinball" without saying "something that gets shuffled all over the place" or "ricochet."
The New York Times said this about Joe Biden:
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
Extra clues:
If you like, you can review the words clairvoyant, skyscraping, and nomadic.
Extra clues:
|