to keep the ball a-rolling
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To continue without intermission. To keep the fun, or the conversation, etc., alive; to keep the matter going. A metaphor taken from several games played with balls.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to keep the ball a-rolling” mean?
To continue without intermission. To keep the fun, or the conversation, etc., alive; to keep the matter going. A metaphor taken from several games played with balls.
Is “to keep the ball a-rolling” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.