What does hurler mean?
A hurler is primarily a baseball pitcher: the player who throws the ball toward home plate and tries to prevent the opposing team from scoring. The word also has a broader, less frequent meaning of anyone who hurls or throws something forcefully. In hurling, the traditional Irish field sport, a hurler is a player who uses a hurley, or wooden stick, to strike a sliotar. As a baseball term, hurler is especially common in reporting, commentary, and historical writing, where it can sound more vivid or traditional than pitcher. It is used regularly in phrases such as starting hurler and the hurler's mound. The word ultimately belongs to the family of hurl, whose basic idea is forceful throwing, and it is easily confused in writing with hurdler, an athlete who runs over barriers. Its sporting senses make it both a practical synonym and a distinctive piece of athletic vocabulary.
nounA hurler is someone who hurls or throws something with force, especially a baseball pitcher. The word can also refer to a player in the traditional Irish sport of hurling.
- A baseball player who pitches the ball.
- A person who hurls or throws something forcefully.
- A player in the sport of hurling.
"The opposing hurler retired three consecutive batters before surrendering a hit."
"Their leading hurler allowed only two hits in the entire game."
"The child pretended to be a hurler and threw a wooden block across the room."
The standard plural is hurlers, used for multiple baseball pitchers, hurling players, or people who throw forcefully.
"Both hurlers were effective during the first half of the season."
A baseball hurler may stand calmly on the mound, but the word captures the real business of pitching: sending the ball hard and fast toward home plate.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hurler come from?
Hurler is an English agent noun formed from hurl with the suffix -er, meaning “one who hurls.” The verb hurl is Middle English in origin and continues Old French hurler, “to throw or toss”; the deeper ancestry of that French word is less certain and should not be overstated. Hurler's literal sense of throwing developed into sporting uses connected with pitching a baseball and hurling with a hurley.
Related word forms
How hurler is actually used
Hurler is an established alternative to pitcher in baseball writing and conversation. In discussion of hurling, it can mean a player who competes in the sport. The general sense of one who throws forcefully is relatively uncommon in everyday speech.
Easily confused with hurler
A hurler throws or pitches, whereas a hurdler competes in track and field by running over hurdles.