Confusing Words Clarified: Group B; Homonyms, Homophones, Homographs, Synonyms, etc. +(lists of "B" sections that are organized into what for some people are confusing groups of words)A classic story tells how Plato had defined man as a featherless two-tooted animal, and his students agreed. The next day, Diogenes pulled the feathers off a cock and took it to Plato. "Here's Plato's man," he said. It was an embarrassing moment for Plato. Thereafter he corrected the definition to "a featherless two-footed animal with flat nails". Ever since Plato's description, man has never ceased to define man, and has constantly sought a more meaningful self-definition. Voltaire altered the Platonic version, in Candide, to "man is a featherless biped with a soul".
Another unknown author created, "Man is the only animal that eats when he is not hungry, and drinks when he is not thirsty." Efforts have been made to help you grasp the meanings of various words that may be confusing so you can utilize them with greater accuracy in your communication. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome by writing to: E-mail Contact (just click it for an e-mail form) or by typing, words@wordinfo.info, as the address in your e-mail heading. If you have any problems understanding the pronunciation symbols, go to this Pronunciation Chart for clarifications.babble, babel, bauble, bubble
babble (BAB uhl)
1. To talk rapidly or at length about things that seem irrelevant or foolish; to jabber or to prattle: "The salesman kept going on with his babble until we shut the door in his face."
2. To say something rapidly and incoherently without pausing, usually because of excitement or fear: "She babbled something about a car accident and then ran out to take a closer look." 3. Clamor, hubbub, din: "The speaker shouted over the babble of the crowd." 4. Gurgle, murmur, coo: "The baby babbled happily." Babel, babel (BAY buhl, BAB uhl)
Tumult, confusion, bedlam, clamor: "The political convention became a babel of conflicting opinions."
The term Babel comes from the Biblical "Tower of Babel", the tower which according to Genesis 11:4-9 was started by the descendants of Noah to reach heaven but it was abandoned when God confused the language of the builders into many mutually incomprehensible languages. The city of Babel in Shinar is now thought to be Babylon. bauble (BAW buhl)
A trinket, ornament, usually cheap, or am inexpensive piece of jewelry: “She wore the red bauble that she obtained when she visited the gypsy’s tent at the fair.”
bubble (BUB uhl)
1. A small globe of gas floating in a liquid: "The bubble floated upwards in the lava lamp."
2. To become lively or effervescent: "The child loved to try to blow a big bubble in his milk using a straw." 3. Anything that lacks firmness or permanence of substance or that may involve excessive speculation; often fraudulent: "The investment officer encouraged his clients to invest in the real estate bubble.” bad, bade, badly
bad (BAHD)
1. Not good, poor, inferior, below standard; faulty, defective: "She's a very bad singer."
"Your car won't start if the battery is bad." 2. Immoral, unethical, wrong: "Lying is a bad thing."3. Erroneous, wrong, incorrect: "Her bad spelling kept her from becoming a secretary." bade (BAYD, BAHD)
To tell, say, to wish: "He bade us farewell."
"He bade his mother good-bye." badly (BAHD lee)
1. Poorly, improperly, incorrectly: "He did the work very badly."
2. Immorally, unethically, corruptly: "The army behaved badly toward the war prisoners." 3. Very much, greatly, intensely: "My tooth hurts badly." "The boy wanted a new bicycle badly." bail, bale
bail (BAYL)
1. A bond, a surety: "The accused are being held on $10,000 bail."
2. Post bond for, post bail for: "The accused’s brother was going to bail him out of jail." 3. Scoop, throw water out: "Bail the water out of the boat as quickly as possible." bale (BAYL)
1. A large amount of material; such as, hay, wood, paper, cotton, etc. which is pressed together tightly and often tied or wrapped: "The farmer loaded the big bale of hay on to the truck."
"The stevedore hauled one bale of cotton after another from the ship." 2. That which causes ruin or sorrow: "She was suffering the bale of woe and torment in her mental anguish."bait, bate
bait (BAYT)
1. Food or other enticement placed, as a lure, on a hook, or in a trap: "The fisherman put an earthworm as bait on the fishing hook."
2. To torment with persistent insult or ridicule: "Neighborhood toughs would constantly bait minority groups with racist remarks." 3. To get someone excited by exposing something desirable to that person while keeping it out of reach: "He wanted to bait his wife by showing her a tantalizing necklace." bate (BAYT)
To decrease, to lesson the force or intensity of, to moderate: "He was about to bate, or to become less active, in his exercise routines."
baited, bated, batted
baited (BAYT'D)
Lured, as food, that is placed on a hook or in a trap and used in the catching of animals: "They bated their hooks in expectation that they would catch many fish."
bated (BAT'D)
In a nervous and excited state because it is not known what will happen: "They waited for the answer with bated breath; that is, they nervously waited for the answer."
batted (BAT'D)
1. To hit with or as if with a club or bat: "When he batted the ball that day, he set a record."
2. Informal, to produce hurriedly: "She batted out a speech in a short time." 3. To discuss or consider at some length: "They batted the idea around." 4. To wink or flutter: "She batted her eyelashes." bald, balled, bawled
bald (BAWLD)
1. No hair on the head; bald-headed, bald-pated, hairless, smooth: "When he became bald, he bought a toupee."
2. Lacking a natural or usual covering; bare, without cover, treeless, denuded, barren: "The mountain is bald above the tree line." 3. Open, bare, undisguised: "That is a bald falsehood!" balled (BAWLD)
1. To form something into a round shape: "I stood up quickly and balled the letter in my hands and threw it in the trash."
2. A state of confusion or things in a tangle and a mess: "Because the overseer did not check all the details before giving the order, the workers balled up the project." bawled (BAWLD)
1. Past tense of bawl (cried loudly); cried, wailed, weeped: "The nursery was full of babies who bawled for long periods."
2. Cried out noisily; shouted, bellowed, yelled: "The captain bawled for the sergeant to come immediately." 3. Something said loudly; shouted by using a very loud voice: "The manager shouted, 'Come in here, now!' and the salesman was bawled out for showing up late." baleful, baneful
baleful (BAYL fuhl)
1. Threatening harm or great evil; ominous: "He turned and gave us a baleful, or sinister, glare."
2. Harmful or deadly; full of menacing or malign influences; pernicious: "They experienced the baleful effects of water pollution on their health." baneful (BAYN fuhl)
Causing harm, ruin, and death: "On television, we have been witnessing the baneful results of war as Israel attacks Hamas in Gaza."
In ordinary use, baleful and baneful are interchangeable, although baneful also means "poisonous" and is normally applied to substances, causes, and influences that result in death. "The gathering clouds promised a baleful storm." "Some poisons are merely injurious, but others are baneful." No one is likely to be arrested if he or she gives a rival a baleful glance, but watch out if anyone gives him a baneful dose of arsenic. ball, ball, bawl
ball (BAWL)
1. Round mass, sphere, globe: "The cat played with the ball of twine."
2. Games which may involve using a round object to hit or to kick: "Four boys were playing ball in the field." 3. Shot, bullets, projectiles: "Each musket was loaded with powder and ball." ball (BAWL)
1. Dance, dancing party, prom: "The banquet was followed by a ball."
2. A large formal party for dancing: "All of the students were invited to the university ball." bawl (BAWL)
1. Cry, wail, howl, weep: "The little boy was so upset that he began to bawl for his mother."
2. To speak very loudly: "The children were misbehaving so badly and the father was so frustrated, that he could only bawl at them to settle down." ballad, ballet, ballot
ballad (BAL uhd)
1. A narrative poem or a narrative verse: "He read the class a great English ballad."
2. Folk song, a song: "We sat around the campfire, while a folk singer sang a wonderful ballad." ballet (bal LAY)
An intricate group dance with pantomime that tells a story: "The famous ballet was attended by hundreds of patrons."
ballot (BAL uht)
An act or method of voting; a ticket, a list of candidates to be voted on: "Three candidates for mayor are listed on the ballot."
balloon, balloon, balloon payment
balloon (buh LOON)
1. An extremely large bag filled with a lighter-than-air gas (such as helium) and used as a form of air transport, carrying passengers or equipment in a suspended basket or gondola: "We decided to take a ride in a balloon to see the country side from a different perspective."
2. A rounded outline with a point directed toward a character in a cartoon that encloses the text of the character's speech or thought: "Cartoonists often use one balloon after the other to express each character's spoken words or thoughts." balloon (buh LOON)
1. A sac that is inserted into a body cavity or tube and distended with air or gas for therapeutic purposes; such as, with angioplasty: "The doctor explained that he would inflate a balloon within the blood vessel so it would expand and permit the normal flow of blood again."
"Another physician explained that the surgeon would use balloon angioplasty to open the obstructed blood vessel by threading a small balloon-tipped catheter into the vessel to keep the blood flowing properly." balloon payment (buh LOON PAY muhnt)
A final payment that is much larger than any earlier payment made on a debt: "We agreed to pay $1,000 a year for ten years and then make a balloon payment of $60,000 at the end of the period."
Balloonists are constantly defying gravity and they must continually be aware of the highs and hazards of their hot-air ballooning activities. balm, bomb
balm (BOM)
An aromatic preparation, often made from tropical evergreen trees, used for healing: "I gave my son a soothing balm which had a good odor as well as a calming result."
"The doctor prepared a balm using the resins and oils from various plants which helped the patient become more comfortable and quiet." bomb (BOM)
1. As a military device, usually round, filled with an explosive substance which may be dropped on a subject with the intent of injury or destruction: "The pilot sought to bomb the decoy ship while learning to fly the jet."
2. A container to store substances: such as, gas, paint, etc. stored under pressure: "The store carried a paint bomb in several shades of red." 3. A blob of lava exploded from a volcano: "The lava bomb in the farmer’s field made plowing very difficult." banco; banco, banko
banco (BANG koh)
A bet in certain gambling games, as baccarat and chemin de fer, for the entire amount allowed by the casino banker: "The gambler made a banco that matched the full amount in the bank, to the exclusion of all of his previous lower bets."
banco, banko (BANG koh)
An African term for mud (local earth/clay plus water) mixed with straw and/or husks of cereals (plus cow dung which hardens to a smooth solid) and is used for coating walls and ceilings: "The buildings which utilize banco mudbricks are found in several areas of Africa and the use of banco is characterized by its cooling properties for those who live in such structures."
This African banco term which refers to such "earthen construction practices" came from Manding, a widespread language group in West Africa. band, banned
band (BAND)
1. A group, company, party, crowd: "A band of students brought their grievances before the dean."
2. Orchestra, ensemble, group: "The band played until midnight." 3. To unite, join, gather: "If we band together, we can give our complaints greater strength." 4. A strip, circlet, strap; belt, collar, girdle: "Her hair was held in place by a velvet band." "A dark band of clouds was on the horizon." banned (BAND)
Prohibited, restricted, barred, excluded, banished: "Bicycles are banned from the new superhighway."
"They threatened to have the book banned." The rock group was so bad that the audience wanted the untalented band to be banned. bandage, Band-Aid
bandage (BAND dij)
1. A covering; such as, a strip of cloth that protects or supports part of the body that has been injured: "The doctor wrapped a bandage around the boy's arm after he fell off his bicycle."
2. To cover or to wrap a wound or other injury with a strip of cloth: "The girl's mother had to bandage her daughter's knee to stop the bleeding." Band-aid (BAND ayd")
1. A trademark used for an adhesive bandage with a gauze pad in the center, used to protect minor wounds: "After I cut my finger with my pocket knife, I was able to put on a Band-Aid to stop the bleeding."
2. Always used before a noun, disapproving; able to help or to improve something only for a short time: "The government could only provide a Band-Aid solution to the problem of unemployment." "True welfare reform is being bypassed by the U.S. Congress with Band-Aid solutions." bands, banns, bans
bands (BAHNZ)
Small groups of musicians who play popular music together: "The drummers of bands are a significant part of rock-and-roll bands and jazz bands."
banns (BAHNZ)
A public statement which announces that two people are going to be married: "The banns of marriage were posted in the church."
bans (BAHNZ)
Statements, usually official, forbidding people from using or from doing something: "The city has bans against smoking in all public buildings."
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