Definition of "hardball" []

• Baseball. (noun)
• Informal The use of any means, however ruthless, to attain an objective. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "There is another MSNBC show called hardball where this guy has a debate with what he calls the hardball hotshots, and as much as he would like to think all views are covered, everyone of the hotshots are republican and support Bush."
• "From a former executive's point of view, suing your wife is the definition of hardball."
• "There's a question as to whether politicians should play hardball and another question as to whether any particular instance of hardball is smart."