googly
googly Lexical Profile
googly Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
(especially of the eyes) Bulging, wide open, or rolling, often expressing surprise, infatuation, or comical bewilderment.
"The children glued plastic googly eyes onto the painted rocks during their afternoon craft session."
• noun
British In cricket, a deceptive off-breaking delivery bowled by a right-arm leg-spin bowler with an apparent leg-break action, turning sharply in the opposite direction to what the batter expects.
"The spinner completely deceived the opening batter with a well-disguised googly that clipped the top of off stump."
British A tricky, unexpected, or awkward question, problem, or situation intended to catch someone off guard.
"The interviewer bowled him a googly at the very end of the press conference by asking about the leaked financial audit."
• Rhymes for googly
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
The adjective sense derives from 'goggle' (to stare with wide, bulging eyes), influenced by the comic strip character Barney Google in the early 20th century. The cricket noun sense arose around 1900 among British and Australian players, likely of playful imitative origin suggesting something tricky or deceptive.