Definition

Noun: * The billiard ball that is intended to be the first ball struck by the cue ball: In cue sports like pool or snooker, the "object ball" is the specific ball a player aims to hit with the cue ball as part of their intended shot.

Usage

The term is used to describe the target of a shot in billiards, pool, or snooker. It specifies which ball the player is trying to hit or pocket. * For this shot, the red ball is the object ball. * You must clearly state which ball is your object ball before taking the shot. * He positioned the cue ball to get a clean angle on the object ball.

Advanced Usage

• Primary Object Ball: The first ball the cue ball is intended to strike in a given shot. In many shots, this is the only object ball.
• Secondary Object Ball: In combination or carom shots, the cue ball may strike one object ball (the primary) into another (the secondary). The final target ball is sometimes called the secondary object ball.
  • He used the 4-ball as the primary object ball to carom into and pocket the 8-ball.

Variants and Related Words

• Cue Ball (n): The white ball struck by the cue.
• Target Ball (n): A less formal synonym for "object ball."
• Object Balls (n, plural): In games like 8-ball, this refers collectively to all balls that are not the cue ball (e.g., "Stripes" or "Solids").

Synonyms

• Target ball

Antonyms

• Cue ball

Noun

1. the billiard ball that is intended to be the first ball struck by the cue ball