home plate

American  

noun

Baseball.

1. the base at which the batter stands and which a base runner must reach safely in order to score a run, typically a five-sided slab of whitened rubber set at ground level at the front corner of the diamond.

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home plate British  

noun

1. Also called: plate.   home.   home base.  baseball a flat often five-sided piece of hard rubber or other material that serves to define the area over which the pitcher must throw the ball for a strike and that a base runner must safely reach on his way from third base to score a run

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Etymology

Origin of home plate

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

Example Sentences

This year, pitchers, catchers and hitters can appeal umpires’ calls at home plate to a machine equipped with technology that can accurately track the ball’s location to within a fraction of an inch.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

He policed brushback pitches with ardor and once called a night game for darkness when lighting malfunctions compromised visibility near home plate.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 26, 2026

In the bottom of the ninth in Game 7, playing second base with the infield in, Rojas cleanly fielded a grounder and threw out Isiah Kiner-Falefa by inches at home plate to save the game.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 27, 2025

Rojas saved the day for a second time on a ground ball at second base, fielding it from a drawn-in position before firing for a force-out at home plate.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 2, 2025

He guessed it was twice the distance from home plate to the center field wall.

From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret