Freeballing

The speaker was talking about someone ad libbing or talking off the cuff.  It is a word blend of “spitballing” (suggesting ideas, brainstorming), and “freewheeling” (uncontrolled).  “Freestyling” (improvising) may also be in the mix, given the context.  It is acknowledged that “freeballing” is indeed a word, meaning to not wear underwear, but in the context of the discussion, it is clear the speaker was mixing idioms.  A big thanks to Mike and Anthony Kovacs (and Sandor?) for spotting the malaphor immediately.

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One Comment on “Freeballing”

  1. Robert J. Smith says:

    It’s too bad that this word already has a meaning because I like it. It reminds me of “highballing”, which means to move quickly (from the railroad “highball”, the signal to proceed.

    Otherwise, “freeballing” could have become a real used to refer to someone speaking off the cuff.


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