soupbone

[ soop-bohn ]

noun

1. a bone used for making soup or broth.
2. Baseball Slang. a pitcher's throwing arm.

Word History and Origins

Origin of soupbone¹

First recorded in 1910–15; soup + bone

Example Sentences

The arm, Passan shows us, just ain’t what it used to be back when pitchers regularly unlimbered what was called their soupbone every fourth day with the expectation that they would twirl complete games all season long.

From Washington Post

No, the operation is not always successful, but on the other hand, some pitchers actually return with a rejiggered soupbone that can hurl a baseball even faster than what God had wrought.

From Washington Post

In this course he relied in part on his mother Dorothy, who alone ruled an unruly household of 13 children in a New York City war zone with such edifying comments as, "If you go to jail, I'm not going to visit you or send you money," or, "You want this African soupbone?" when a spanking was in the offing.

From Time Magazine Archive

One of them, a hobo story called "The Informal Execution of Soupbone Pew," is a report of a murder told in a bantering tone reminiscent of Ring Lardner.

From Time Magazine Archive