Idiom
drop the ball
Meanings
To make a mistake or fail to handle a responsibility properly.
To forget to do something important, causing inconvenience or trouble.
Definition
To drop the ball means to make a mistake or fail to do something you were responsible for.
If you drop the ball, you fail to do what you should have done, often by forgetting, mishandling a task, or missing a deadline. It suggests that the mistake caused a problem for other people or for a project. The phrase is common in work, school, and everyday responsibilities.
Examples
- I dropped the ball and forgot to send the email.
- The vendor dropped the ball on delivery, so the event started late.
- If we drop the ball on this report, the whole team will look bad.
- She apologized for dropping the ball during the client call.
Common mistake
Learners sometimes use it for accidents with real balls, but it usually means making a mistake or failing at a responsibility.
More at B2 level
- Bob's your uncle Used to say that something will be easy or will happen exactly as expected after a simple step.
- touch base To touch base means to briefly contact someone to share updates, confirm plans, or check progress.
- ballpark figure A ballpark figure is an approximate number or estimate, not an exact one.
- take the mickey To take the mickey means to mock someone or tease them in an unkind or cheeky way.
- cheap as chips Very cheap; costing very little money.
More idiom (verb phrase)s
- touch base To touch base means to briefly contact someone to share updates, confirm plans, or check progress.
- take the mickey To take the mickey means to mock someone or tease them in an unkind or cheeky way.
- have a chinwag To have a chinwag means to have a relaxed, friendly chat with someone.
- face the music To accept and deal with the unpleasant consequences of what you have done or a difficult situation.
- get down to brass tacks To get down to brass tacks means to start talking about the most important, practical details of so…