behind the eight-ball

Englisch - Englisch

Definition von behind the eight-ball im Englisch Englisch wörterbuch

Relevante Übersetzungen

behind the eight-ball

In a difficult situation

He was desperate, playing behind the eight-ball.

behind the eight-ball

In a difficult situation or tight spot

After his last two projects failed, he was really behind the eight-ball.

behind the eight ball

Alternative spelling of behind the eight-ball

Silbentrennung

be-hind the eight-ball

Synonyme

snookered

Etymologie

() Thought to derive from the game of Kelly pool, in which players assigned balls numerically higher than 8—that is, balls that are behind the 8 ball in order—have little possibility of winning, or more generally, from the fact that the 8 ball is considered harder to aim out because of its color. Some sources have pointed to its origin as the game of eight ball, but eight ball was popularized after the expression was already in use (by at least 1919), and at the time of popularization, called then B.B.C. Co. Pool, was marketed with a ball set that did not not include an actual 8-ball, but rather seven balls of one color, seven of another, and an unnumbered black ball.