Where Did the Expression Balled up Come from?
Q from Graham C Reed, South Africa: I've Been Wondering Where the Expression Balls-up Comes From. a Though Now Widely Known in the English-Speaking World, This...
Q From Graham C Reed, South Africa: I've been wondering where the expression balls-up comes from. A Though now widely known in the English-speaking world, this is in its immediate origin a low British slang term for a bungled or badly carried out task or action, a messed-up or confused situation, or a complete foul-up.
What does getting balled up mean?
: to make a mess of : confuse, muddle. intransitive verb. : to become badly muddled or confused.
Where did Expression balls out come from?
With maximum effort, energy, or speed, and without caution or restraint. The phrase most likely originated as an railroad engineering term, referring to the mechanical governor of steam locomotives, which has two weighted steel balls that extend to the "balls out" position when at maximum speed.
Alexander Ross has covered the video game industry for a decade, writing deep dives on game design, esports tournaments, VR developments, and gaming culture.
