Pinballing

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Rapidly moving in a way that resembles bouncing between surfaces or objects characterizes a lively and unpredictable action
2. A chaotic series of transitions or movements that resemble bouncing around can be defined as energetic and erratic behavior
3. Engaging in swift, erratic movements akin to bouncing off surfaces signifies a lively and unpredictable process of traversal

Etymology: "Pinballing" is the present participle of "pinball," a word built from two plain English nouns: "pin," in the sense of the wooden pins once set up as targets in bowling-style games, and "ball." The pinball machine descends from those tabletop games, in which a ball was launched across a board studded with pins and obstacles, and the name describes exactly what the ball did there. Bouncing off pins and bumpers is the whole point, which is why the verb took on the sense of rapid, unpredictable ricocheting between surfaces. The verb is therefore a figurative extension of the game's name. Someone pinballing between meetings, jobs or websites is treated as if they were the ball itself, knocked from one obstacle to the next with little control over the path. The participle form simply carries that motion into an ongoing action.

Synonyms: bouncing, rebounding