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Glite Dictionary
line-drive single

line-drive single

1 6.6
A base hit made by hitting the ball hard so the batter reaches first base
  • noun
  • Jargon
translation icon : sencillo por línea
  • Following a clean line drive single to left center field, breaking up the no-hitter, the Official Scorer "corrects" his earlier call to a hit, and the pitcher fans the next batter to end the game.
  • line-drive single to left

Examples

  • She managed to get on base with a line-drive single that flew past the shortstop.

  • The crowd erupted when he connected with a powerful line-drive single into the gap.

  • My father was up from New York for the weekend, and when I led off the game with a line-drive single over

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Got on base with a line-drive single his last at bat.

    Suspect Zero (2004)

  • The pitch, and a swing and a solid line-drive single to left field.

    Tromeo & Juliet (1996)

  • The pitch, and a swing and a solid line-drive single to left field.

    Tromeo & Juliet (1996)

  • He then managed to go from first to third on a fairly routine line drive single.

    Blog text (28)

  • Barry Zito out-dueled Justin Verlander and even came through with an RBI line-drive single against Justin Verlander.

    Blog text (27)

  • In the final inning, he hit a crucial line-drive single that brought in the winning run.

Synonyms

single
vsline-drive single
  • Jargon
85 4.2

A hit that allows the batter to reach first base

is the specific line-drive version rather than any hit
line single
vsline-drive single
  • Jargon
6.1

A hard straight hit that lets the batter reach first base

is the more general hit that allows reaching first base regardless of contact type

How Far

line-drive triple
  • Jargon
5.3
line-drive double
  • Jargon
1 7.4
line-drive single
  • Jargon
1 6.6

Surface Forms

line-drive single singular
line-drive singles plural

Morphology

line-drive + single

The meaning — a single (a hit allowing the batter to reach first base) that is achieved by a line drive — is directly compositional from 'line-drive' (a sharply hit ball traveling on a straight line) + 'single' (a hit reaching first base). It follows a common modifier + noun pattern and the relation is literal and predictable, so a learner who knows the constituents and basic baseball vocabulary can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Line-drive single comes from baseball: a line-drive is a very fast, low, straight hit and a single means the batter reaches 'first base'. Imagine the ball flying hard past the infield on a straight line so the batter can reach 'first base', and that image explains why the phrase means a sharp hit that lets the batter get to first.