ball carrier
2
2.8
- noun
:
portador del balón
- After receiving the handoff, the ball carrier sprinted down the field, trying to evade the opposing team's tackles.
- ball carrier was tackled
He was used to everything going through him at Villa and him being a ball carrier to he had to run off the ball to create spaces for other players.
- He was used to everything going through him at Villa and him being a ball carrier to he had to run off the ball to create spaces for other players.
Examples
-
At times, he did a fantastic job recognizing the play, finding the ball carrier, and finishing the tackle physically.
Blog text (28) -
To elude tackles, ball carriers may resort to ducking, dodging, darting, and spinning.
Academic text (2008) -
Some guys punch the ball out of ball carriers' hands.
Blog text (24) -
Shed that block and get to the ball carrier!
-
Jennings will be the primary ball carrier, and his cost is extremely cheap for someone getting 25+ touches this week.
Blog text (10) -
Protect the ball carrier.
Fiction book (2000) -
Players are always looking for the big hit instead of squaring up and wrapping up the ball carrier.
Blog text (4) -
Scott punishes ball carriers and explodes on impact.
Blog text (17) -
At times, two or more tacklers may simultaneously converge on a single ball carrier.
Academic text (2008) -
Raeburn saluted his bruising ball-carrier and lamented not being able to give him more rest.
Blog text (30)
Synonyms
11
2.3
An offensive player who carries the ball to move it forward
Surface Forms
Morphology
ball + carrier
The meaning is directly compositional: 'ball' (the object) + 'carrier' (one who carries) yields 'someone who carries the ball', which maps exactly onto the sports sense. The formation is a regular noun + agentive -er pattern and is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Ball carrier is a simple name made from ball and carrier, meaning someone carrying the ball as they run. In football or rugby, the ball carrier is the player holding the ball and trying to 'move forward' to score, so the name means the player who carries the ball when their team tries to score.