Inkball

Quick meaning: Inkball is a noun meaning The gall of an oak tree, used to produce ink.

Meaning

The gall of an oak tree, used to produce ink.

More Meanings

1. (historical, printing) A leather-covered dauber, stuffed with soft, resilient wadding, with a wooden handle, used to ink type forms for printing. A predecessor of brayers and self-inking presses.

Example Sentences

The first tree I knew was an oak under which I played as a small child and gathered large inkballs that I used as marbles.

[…]consider that this perfect work was done on a wooden press, that the form was inked by hand with inkballs or "daubers,"[…]

I said that ink made from pokeberries was better than that made from inkballs. I said that inkballs on oak trees were scarce. All the other students laughed. They bought commercial ink at the stores.

He turns to the inkstone and picks up by the handles the two inkballs, rolling the leather facings together to freshen the ink. […] As the pressman returns the inkballs to the inkstone, the journeyman closes the frisket and tympan.

Word Forms

• inkballs
• ink-ball
• ink ball

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include ink ball, ballstock, inkpot, inkbottle, inkhorn, ink-pot.

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