adj · name · noun · verb · 19 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈsnəʊbɔːl/
General-American:snōʹbôl
General-American:/ˈsnoʊbɔl/
cot-caught-merger:snōʹbôl
cot-caught-merger:/ˈsnoʊbɑl/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:S N OW1 B AO2 L
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adj
Meaning 1
Of something with rapid growth, often uncontrolled. Compare snowball effect.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
name
Meaning 2
A surname transferred from the nickname.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
name
Meaning 3
A locality in the Queanbeyan-Palerang council area, south eastern New South Wales, Australia.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
A ball of snow, usually one made in the hand and thrown for amusement in a snowball fight; also a larger ball of snow made by rolling a snowball around in snow that sticks to it and increases its diameter.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
A cocktail made from lemonade and advocaat.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
Something that snowballs (grows rapidly out of control).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
A sex act involving passing ejaculated semen from one person's mouth to another's.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: lifestyle, sex, sexuality
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
8
noun
Meaning 8
A type of ice dessert: a snow cone.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: US
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
9
noun
Meaning 9
A small cake, typically cream-filled and covered in chocolate icing and desiccated coconut.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
It didn't take long to eat a packetful of snowballs — they are simply delicious.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
10
verb
Meaning 10
To rapidly grow out of proportion or control, from an initially smaller state.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively, intransitive
Examples
The high unemployment rates quickly snowballed into a major budget problem for the government.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
11
verb
Meaning 11
To play at throwing snowballs.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
12
verb
Meaning 12
To pelt with snowballs; to throw snowballs at.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
13
verb
Meaning 13
To receive ejaculated semen in one's mouth, and to then pass it back and forth between one’s mouth and another person’s mouth.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive, slang, vulgar
Topics: lifestyle, sex, sexuality
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
14
noun
Meaning 14
snow pressed into a ball for throwing (playfully)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: ball
15
noun
Meaning 15
ball of crushed ice with fruit syrup
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: frozen dessert
16
noun
Meaning 16
ball of ice cream covered with coconut and usually chocolate sauce
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: frozen dessert
17
noun
Meaning 17
plant having heads of fragrant white trumpet-shaped flowers; grows in sandy arid regions
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: sweet sand verbena, Abronia elliptica
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: sand verbena
18
verb
Meaning 18
increase or accumulate at a rapidly accelerating rate
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: increase
19
verb
Meaning 19
throw snowballs at
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: pelt, bombard
History
Etymology
From Middle English snoweball, snoweballe, snaweballe, snayballe, equivalent to snow + ball. Cognate with Scots snawbaw, German Schneeball, Luxembourgish Schnéiball, Dutch sneeuwbal, Afrikaans sneeubal, Limburgish snieëbal, West Frisian sniebal, Saterland Frisian Sneebaal, Sneebal, Swedish snöboll, Elfdalian sniųoboll, Danish snebold, Norwegian Bokmål snøball, Norwegian Nynorsk snøball and Icelandic snjóbolti.
From snow + ball, probably a nickname for someone who had a patch of white hair or a pale bald patch, amid dark hair.
Across languages
Translations
106 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Afrikaans:
sneeubal
— ball of snow
Arabic:
كُرَةُ الثَّلْج
(kuratu ṯ-ṯalj)
— ball of snow
Armenian:
ձնագնդիկ
(jnagndik)
— ball of snow
Basque:
elur-bola
— ball of snow
Belarusian:
сне́жка
(snjéžka)
— ball of snow
Belarusian:
сьне́жка
(sʹnjéžka)
— ball of snow
Belarusian:
сняжо́к
(snjažók)
— ball of snow
Belarusian:
сьняжо́к
(sʹnjažók)
— ball of snow
Bengali:
তুষারগোলক
(tuśargōlok)
— ball of snow
Breton:
pouloudenn erc’h
— ball of snow
Breton:
kouign-erc'h
— ball of snow
Bulgarian:
сне́жна то́пка
(snéžna tópka)
— ball of snow
Catalan:
bola de neu
— ball of snow
Chinese Cantonese:
雪球
(syut3 kau4)
— ball of snow
Chinese Mandarin:
雪球
(xuěqiú)
— ball of snow
Czech:
sněhová koule
— ball of snow
Danish:
snebold
— ball of snow
Dutch:
sneeuwbal
— ball of snow
Esperanto:
neĝobulo
— ball of snow
Estonian:
lumepall
— ball of snow
Faroese:
kavablak
— ball of snow
Faroese:
kavabóltur
— ball of snow
Finnish:
lumipallo
— ball of snow
French:
boule de neige
— ball of snow
French:
balle de neige
— ball of snow
Galician:
bóla de neve
— ball of snow
Georgian:
თოვლის გუნდა
(tovlis gunda)
— ball of snow
Georgian:
გუნდა
(gunda)
— ball of snow
German:
Schneeball
— ball of snow
Greek:
χιονόμπαλα
(chionómpala)
— ball of snow
Hebrew:
כַּדּוּר שֶׁלֶג
(kadúr shéleg)
— ball of snow
Hindi:
स्नोबॉल
(snobŏl)
— ball of snow
Hindi:
बर्फ़ का गोला
(barf kā golā)
— ball of snow
Hungarian:
hógolyó
— ball of snow
Icelandic:
snjóbolti
— ball of snow
Ido:
nivobulo
— ball of snow
Indonesian:
bola salju
— ball of snow
Ingrian:
lumipallo
— ball of snow
Ingrian:
lumipamppu
— ball of snow
Irish:
liathróid sneachta
— ball of snow
Irish:
meall sneachta
— ball of snow
Italian:
palla di neve
— ball of snow
Japanese:
雪玉
(yukidama)
— ball of snow
Japanese:
雪つぶて
(yukitsubute)
— ball of snow
Japanese:
雪だるま
(yukidaruma)
— ball of snow
Kazakh:
кесек қар
(kesek qar)
— ball of snow
Kazakh:
қар кесегі
(qar kesegı)
— ball of snow
Korean:
눈덩이
(nundeong'i)
— ball of snow
Korean:
눈뭉치
(nunmungchi)
— ball of snow
Korean:
스노우볼
(seunoubol)
— ball of snow
Kyrgyz:
кар тогологу
(kar togologu)
— ball of snow
Latgalian:
snīga pyks
— ball of snow
Latin:
pila nivis
— ball of snow
Latin:
globus nivis
— ball of snow
Latvian:
sniega pika
— ball of snow
Lithuanian:
sniego gniūžtė
— ball of snow
Luxembourgish:
Schnéiball
— ball of snow
Luxembourgish:
Schnéiklatz
— ball of snow
Macedonian:
снежна топка
(snežna topka)
— ball of snow
Norman:
boule dé né
— ball of snow
Norwegian Bokmål:
snøball
— ball of snow
Norwegian Nynorsk:
snøball
— ball of snow
Iranian Persian:
گُلولِهٔ بَرْف
(golule-ye barf)
— ball of snow
Iranian Persian:
گُلولِهٔ بَرْفی
(golule-ye barfi)
— ball of snow
Polish:
śnieżka
— ball of snow
Polish:
kulka śnieżna
— ball of snow
Polish:
kulka śniegowa
— ball of snow
Portuguese:
bola de neve
— ball of snow
Romanian:
bulgăre de zăpadă
— ball of snow
Russian:
снежо́к
(snežók)
— ball of snow
Russian:
сне́жный ком
(snéžnyj kom)
— ball of snow
Serbo-Croatian:
gruda
— ball of snow
Serbo-Croatian:
гру̏два
— ball of snow
Serbo-Croatian:
grȕdva
— ball of snow
Slovak:
snehová guľa
— ball of snow
Slovene:
snežna kepa
— ball of snow
Sotho:
bolo ya lehloa
— ball of snow
Spanish:
bola de nieve
— ball of snow
Spanish:
bola nival
— ball of snow
Spanish:
bola nívea
— ball of snow
Swedish:
snöboll
— ball of snow
Tajik:
барфкулӯла
(barfkulüla)
— ball of snow
Thai:
ก้อนหิมะ
— ball of snow
Thai:
ก้อนหิมะปั้น
— ball of snow
Turkish:
kar topu
— ball of snow
Turkish:
kartopu
— ball of snow
Ottoman Turkish:
قار طوپی
(kar topu)
— ball of snow
Ukrainian:
сні́жка
(snížka)
— ball of snow
Urdu:
سْنوبال
(snobāl)
— ball of snow
Urdu:
بَرْف کا گولا
(barf kā golā)
— ball of snow
Uyghur:
قار توپ
(qar top)
— ball of snow
Uzbek:
qor soqqa
— ball of snow
Vietnamese:
hòn tuyết
— ball of snow
Welsh:
pelen eira
— ball of snow
Finnish:
lumipallo
— cocktail
Japanese:
スノーボール
(sunōbōru)
— cocktail
Korean:
스노우볼
(seunoubol)
— cocktail
Russian:
снежо́к
(snežók)
— cocktail
Ukrainian:
сні́жка
(snížka)
— cocktail
Finnish:
paisua
— rapidly grow out of proportion or control
Japanese:
雪だるま式に増える
(yukidarumashiki ni fueru)
— rapidly grow out of proportion or control
Finnish:
olla lumisotasilla
— play at throwing snowballs
Finnish:
leikkiä lumisotaa
— play at throwing snowballs
Japanese:
雪合戦をする
(yukigassen o suru)
— play at throwing snowballs
Swedish:
ha snöbollskrig
— play at throwing snowballs
Turkmen:
gar zyňyşmak
— play at throwing snowballs