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Definition of paintball

paintball

/ˈpeɪntbɔːl/
paint · ball
Plural:paintballs
•
Past Simple:paintballed
•
Past Participle:paintballed
•
Present Participle:paintballing
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paintball Lexical Profile

paintball Game Scores & Validity

• noun

1

A competitive team sport in which players eliminate opponents from play by hitting them with spherical dye-filled gelatin capsules fired from compressed-gas markers.

Example

"Our company organized an outdoor game of paintball as a weekend team-building activity."

2

A small, round, breakable gelatin capsule filled with water-soluble dye, designed to burst upon impact when propelled from an air marker.

Example

"Make sure to store the box of paintballs in a cool, dry place so the gelatin shells do not warp."

• verb

1

To participate in the recreational sport of paintball, or to strike someone or something with a dye-filled capsule.

Example

"The group of friends went to the woodland course to paintball for the afternoon."

• Nearby Words

painstakingly
paint
paintable
paintball
paintballer
paintbox
paintbrush

Word Origin & Etymology

Coined in the early 1980s as a compound of 'paint' and 'ball', originating from gelatin-encapsulated dye pellets initially used by foresters and ranchers to mark trees and cattle from a distance.

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Paintball. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/paintball
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