batsman
batsman Lexical Profile
batsman Game Scores & Validity
• noun
In cricket (and formerly baseball), a player who is currently batting or whose primary role on a team is to score runs by hitting the ball with a bat.
"The opening batsman defended the wicket for nearly four hours to secure a draw for his team."
In aviation, a deckhand or ground-crew signaler who uses handheld paddles or illuminated wands to guide aircraft landing on an aircraft carrier or taxiing on a runway.
"The pilot kept his eyes fixed on the batsman's glowing wands as the aircraft approached the pitching flight deck."
Word Nuance & Usage
In 2021, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), custodian of the Laws of Cricket, officially replaced the term "batsman" with the gender-neutral "batter" across the sport's rules, though "batsman" remains widely used in general speech and historical contexts.
Word Origin & Etymology
First recorded in the mid-18th century in early cricket terminology, formed as a compound of "bat's" (possessive of bat) and "man".