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be on the ball

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be on the ball

slang To be attentive, knowledgeable, and quick to take action. I'm so glad that my assistant is always on the ball because I'm too scatterbrained to manage my schedule on my own. I can't believe Molly got that report done so quickly—she's really on the ball.

See also: ball, on

be on the ball

  (informal)

to be quick to understand and to react to things I rely on my co-driver to be on the ball. I didn't sleep well last night and I'm not really on the ball today.

See also: ball, on