A person, especially a baseball player, who hits with great force and power.
From 'slug' (to hit hard) + '-er' (one who does). The verb 'slug' likely comes from Scandinavian origins meaning 'to strike,' and became common in American baseball terminology in the late 1800s.
Babe Ruth was baseball's most famous slugger, and the word entered popular culture because baseball reporters needed a term for players who could hit the ball farther than anyone else—it's a genuinely American word born from the sport's explosion.
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