What does behind the eight-ball mean?

Definitions for behind the eight-ball
be·hind the eight-ball

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word behind the eight-ball.

Wiktionary

  1. behind the eight-balladverb

    In a difficult situation.

  2. behind the eight-balladjective

    In a difficult situation or tight spot.

  3. Etymology: Thought to derive from the game of Kelly pool, in which players assigned balls numerically higher than 8—that is, balls that are behind the 8 ball in order—have little possibility of winning, or more generally, from the fact that the 8 ball is considered harder to aim out because of its color. Some sources have pointed to its origin as the game of eight ball, but eight ball was popularized after the expression was already in use (by at least 1919), and at the time of popularization, called then B.B.C. Co. Pool, was marketed with a ball set that did not not include an actual 8-ball, but rather seven balls of one color, seven of another, and an unnumbered black ball.

How to pronounce behind the eight-ball?

How to say behind the eight-ball in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of behind the eight-ball in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of behind the eight-ball in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of behind the eight-ball in a Sentence

  1. Tom Kloza:

    Russian oil is not crucial to United States. United States's crucial to Europe, i don't know what Europe is going to do without Russian crude. If you take it away, Europe is really behind the eight ball.

  2. The President:

    I guess I shouldn't apologize, but I do apologize for the fact that the United States -- the last administration pulled out of the Paris accord. It put us sort of behind the eight ball a little bit.

  3. The Oilers captain:

    The whole team was n’t very good to start, top to bottom, they were obviously ready to go and got the jump on us. And we could n’t stop the bleeding until it was a little too late and put ourselves a little too far behind the eight ball.

  4. Chris Kubas:

    It's a perfect storm, and we just didn't have enough time to react, now we're just behind the eight ball, and I have no idea when we'll get out from behind it. We're doing the best we can to accommodate all our customers.

  5. Steve Gregg:

    I really don't feel like they have any interest in supporting drivers, lyft seems to be kind of behind the eight ball in comparison to Uber.


Translations for behind the eight-ball

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for behind the eight-ball »

Translation

Find a translation for the behind the eight-ball definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"behind the eight-ball." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/behind+the+eight-ball>.

Discuss these behind the eight-ball definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for behind the eight-ball? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Image or illustration of

    behind the eight-ball

    Credit »

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Browse Definitions.net

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    standing above others in quality or position
    A ambidextrous
    B ultimo
    C contiguous
    D eminent

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for behind the eight-ball: