Usually means: Symbolic representation of burden, restraint.
Definitions Related words Phrases Mentions
We found 20 dictionaries that define the word ball and chain:

General (16 matching dictionaries)
  1. ball and chain: Merriam-Webster
  2. ball and chain: Oxford Learner's Dictionaries
  3. ball and chain: Collins English Dictionary
  4. ball and chain: Vocabulary.com
  5. ball and chain: Wiktionary
  6. ball and chain: The Wordsmyth English Dictionary-Thesaurus
  7. ball and chain: Infoplease Dictionary
  8. ball and chain: Dictionary.com
  9. Ball and Chain (Big Mama Thornton song), Ball and Chain (Elton John song), Ball and Chain (Janis Joplin song), Ball and Chain (Social Distortion song), Ball and Chain (The Who song), Ball and Chain (XTC song), Ball and chain (disambiguation), Ball and chain: Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
  10. ball and chain: Rhymezone
  11. ball and chain: FreeDictionary.org
  12. ball and chain: Mnemonic Dictionary
  13. ball and chain: TheFreeDictionary.com
  14. Ball and chain: Phrase Finder
  15. ball and chain: Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
  16. ball and chain: Merriam-Webster

Computing (1 matching dictionary)
  1. Ball and Chain (disambiguation), ball and chain: Encyclopedia

Miscellaneous (1 matching dictionary)
  1. ball and chain: Idioms

Slang (2 matching dictionaries)
  1. ball and chain: English slang and colloquialisms used in the United Kingdom
  2. The Ball and Chain: A Seattle Lexicon

(Note: See ball_and_chains as well.)

Definitions from Wiktionary (ball and chain)

noun:  A heavy iron ball attached to a prisoner's leg by a chain as a means of restraint.
noun:  (slang) One's wife, as a symbol of restraint.
noun:  (figurative) Anything that restricts one's freedom or opportunities.

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