📖 B — The English dictionary · page 12

battle — Everyday, meaning 1: A battle is a fight between armies, ships or planes in a war.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A battle is any hard struggle or contest, like a battle against illness or a battle of the bands.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To battle is to fight or try very hard against something difficult.↗ Example: The two armies met in a great battle.↗ · Grandma is battling a cold.↗ · The firefighters battled the flames all night.↗ · The game ended in a pillow battle.↗ · It was an uphill battle to finish the project.↗ · The teams battled it out in the final.↗ · The knight was hurt in the battle.↗ · Getting my brother to bed is a nightly battle.↗ · A cruel battle was being fought.↗ · Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, unto battle at Jahaz.↗ (Torah DEU.2.32, JPS 1917)↗ · And it shall be, when ye draw nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, (Torah DEU.20.2, JPS 1917)↗ · and divide the prey into two parts: between the men skilled in war, that went out to battle, and all the congregation; (Torah NUM.31.27, JPS 1917)↗ · Hark! battle is in the land, and great destruction.↗ (Prophets JER.50.22, JPS 1917)↗ · The LORD of hosts mustereth the host of the battle.↗ (Prophets ISA.13.4, JPS 1917)↗ · Make ready buckler and shield, and draw near to battle.↗ (Prophets JER.46.3, JPS 1917)↗

battlefield — Everyday, meaning 1: A battlefield is a place where a battle is or was fought.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (figurative) A battlefield is any place or subject where people argue or compete fiercely.↗ Example: Thousands of soldiers died on the battlefield at the Somme.↗ · We visited the battlefield where the Battle of Hastings was fought.↗ · Poppies grew on the battlefields of the First World War.↗ · The knight rode bravely across the battlefield.↗ · After the food fight, the dining hall looked like a battlefield.↗ · The playground became a battlefield of snowballs.↗ · Social media can become a battlefield of arguments.↗ · The Horse was wounded and fell dead on the battlefield.↗

battlement — Everyday, meaning 1: The battlements are the walls on the top of a castle, with gaps like teeth, where guards can shelter.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A battlement is one of the raised blocks on such a wall.↗ Example: The guards stood on the battlements.↗ · The dragon's claws gripped the battlements.↗ · From the battlements we could see the whole valley.↗ · Flags flew from the castle battlements.↗

bauble — Everyday, meaning 1: A shiny ball or decoration hung on a Christmas tree.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A small, cheap piece of jewellery or a pretty object of little value.↗ Example: We hung red and gold baubles on the Christmas tree.↗ · The cat knocked a glass bauble off the branch.↗ · In art we painted our own baubles.↗ · The queen's crown was real gold, not a cheap bauble.↗ · She bought a little bauble at the market stall.↗ · Be careful: broken baubles can cut your fingers.↗ · She brings her gift with her, whether it is a world or a bauble.↗

bawl — Everyday, meaning 1: To cry very loudly, like a baby.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To shout loudly and roughly.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (informal) «bawl someone out» = to tell them off angrily.↗ Example: The baby bawled all night.↗ · «Get out!» bawled the cook.↗ · The coach bawled at the players to run.↗ · The little boy bawled when he dropped his ice cream.↗ · Dad bawled me out for being late.↗ · The Duchess's baby bawled and sneezed.↗ · ‘Hullo!’ bawled Blockhead-Hans, ‘here I am!↗

bawling — Everyday, meaning 1: Crying very loudly, like a baby or an upset child.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Shouting loudly and roughly at someone.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (informal) «Bawl someone out» means to tell them off angrily (mainly US).↗ Example: The baby was bawling in the back of the car.↗ · I was bawling my eyes out at the end of the film.↗ · The coach was bawling orders across the field.↗ · Stop bawling, you will wake up Grandma!↗ · We heard the toddler bawling in the supermarket.↗ · The bawling went on for an hour until he fell asleep.↗ · The coach bawled him out for being late.↗ (US, informal)↗ · There was such a bawling and screaming--the Fir Tree alone was silent, and he thought to himself, “Am I not to bawl with the rest?↗

bay — Everyday, meaning 1: A bay is part of the sea or a lake that curves into the land.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A bay is a marked space or area for a special use, like a parking bay or loading bay.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To bay is to howl with a long, deep sound, like a dog or wolf.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: A bay is a reddish-brown horse.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: A bay tree has shiny leaves used in cooking (bay leaves).↗ Everyday, meaning 6: To keep something at bay means to hold it back so it cannot reach or harm you.↗ Example: We swam in a sheltered bay.↗ · Park the car in an empty bay.↗ · The wolves bayed at the full moon.↗ · Mum puts a bay leaf in the soup.↗ · She rode a bay horse with a black mane.↗ · Wash your hands to keep germs at bay.↗ · The house has a big bay window.↗ · All day long the army of the Persians was kept at bay.↗ · Asher dwelt at the shore of the sea, and abideth by its bays.↗ (Prophets JDG.5.17, JPS 1917)↗ · and in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grizzled bay horses.↗ (Prophets ZEC.6.3, JPS 1917)↗ · And their south border was from the uttermost part of the Salt Sea, from the bay that looked southward.↗ (Prophets JOS.15.2, JPS 1917)↗

bayonet — Everyday, meaning 1: A bayonet is a sharp steel blade that fits on the end of a rifle for close fighting.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To bayonet someone is to stab them with a bayonet.↗ Example: The soldier fixed his bayonet to the rifle.↗ · The guards stood at the gate with bayonets.↗ · The hedge was made of bayonets, sharp as knives.↗ · He was bayoneted in the battle.↗

bazaar — Everyday, meaning 1: A market, especially in the Middle East or South Asia, with many small shops and stalls in a street or covered area.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A sale held to raise money for a school, church or charity, also called a fete or fair.↗ Example: The bazaar was full of spices, carpets and lamps.↗ · The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul has thousands of shops.↗ · Our school holds a Christmas bazaar every December.↗ · Mum baked cupcakes for the church bazaar.↗ · We bargained for a bag at the bazaar.↗ · The bazaar raised enough money for new library books.↗ · There all the people were in the bazaars, buying and selling.↗

bb — Everyday, meaning 1: (USA) A BB is a small round metal pellet fired from an air gun called a BB gun.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (texting, slang) «bb» is short for «baby», a pet name, or for «bye bye».↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (school, pencils) On pencils, BB means very soft and dark (more B means softer).↗ Everyday, meaning 4: (other uses) BB can stand for many things, like «bed and breakfast» in some ads, or Big Brother.↗ Example: My uncle keeps his BB gun locked in a cupboard.↗ · A BB can hurt someone's eye, so never aim at people.↗ · "gtg bb" means "got to go, bye bye".↗ · The art teacher gave us soft BB pencils for shading.↗ · He texted "miss you bb" to his girlfriend.↗

bc — Everyday, meaning 1: BC is written after a year to mean that many years before the year 1 in the usual calendar, counted backwards.↗ e.g. Julius Caesar died in 44 BC.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: BC stands for British Columbia, a province on the west coast of Canada.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: In text messages, «bc» is a short way of writing «because».↗ Example: The Great Pyramid was built around 2560 BC.↗ · Julius Caesar was killed in 44 BC.↗ · 300 BC came before 200 BC.↗ · From 50 BC to AD 50 is 99 years, because there is no year zero.↗ · Vancouver is the largest city in BC.↗ · «I can't come bc I have practice,» my friend texted.↗

bce — Everyday, meaning 1: BCE stands for «Before the Common Era», used after a year number to show years counted backwards from the start of the usual calendar; it means the same as BC («before Christ»).↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Its partner is CE («Common Era»), which means the same as AD.↗ Example: The pyramids of Giza were built more than two thousand years BCE.↗ · On our timeline, years BCE are on the left.↗ · BCE means the same as BC.↗ · The bigger the number BCE, the longer ago it was.↗ · Ancient Rome was founded many centuries BCE.↗ · Our book uses BCE and CE instead of BC and AD.↗ · Stonehenge was built in the Stone Age, thousands of years BCE.↗ · There is no year zero between 1 BCE and 1 CE.↗

bdellium — In Jewish tradition, meaning 1: A sweet-smelling gum from a tree, or a pale gem or pearl, that people valued.↗ Example: and the gold of that land is good; there is bdellium and the onyx stone.↗ (Torah GEN.2.12, JPS 1917)↗ · Now the manna was like coriander seed, and the appearance thereof as the appearance of bdellium.↗ (Torah NUM.11.7, JPS 1917)↗

be — Everyday, meaning 1: To be means to exist, to be there.↗ e.g. There is a cat in the garden.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To be tells what someone or something is like.↗ e.g. She is tall.↗ The soup is hot.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To be tells where something is.↗ e.g. The keys are on the table.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: To be tells someone's age or job.↗ e.g. Ben is 7.↗ Mum is a doctor.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: Be also helps other verbs.↗ e.g. I am running; the cake was eaten.↗ Everyday, meaning 6: In maths «is» often means «equals»: 3 + 4 is 7.↗ Everyday, meaning 7: (casual) In chatty speech forms of be are dropped or bent: «you coming?», «we was late», «them sweets is 2 dollar», «ain't» for «isn't» or «am not»; (US casual) «I'm like» and «she was all» mean «I said» and «she said».↗ Everyday, meaning 8: (formal) The exam voice uses be in stiff passive and «shall be» forms: «It is given that …», «A total of 12 apples is distributed …», «Answers shall be expressed in whole numbers».↗ Example: How many apples are on the table?↗ · There were 9 apples.↗ Tom ate 1 of them.↗ · There are 5 rows with 4 chairs in each row.↗ · Ben is 7 and Kate is 10.↗ · Three plus four is seven.↗ · Be careful near the pool.↗ · I am hungry; are you?↗ · The children were very happy at the zoo.↗ · Ice is frozen water.↗ · you coming or what? bus is here↗ · them sweets is 2 dollar each, we ain't got enough↗ · It is given that a quantity of 9 apples was present upon the table, of which 1 was subsequently consumed.↗ · "Why are you knocking me about?"↗ · These are the generations of Noah.↗ (Torah GEN.6.9, JPS 1917)↗ · These are the generations of Shem.↗ (Torah GEN.11.10, JPS 1917)↗ · These are the sons of Adah.↗ (Torah GEN.36.16, JPS 1917)↗ · So his strength was not known.↗ (Prophets JDG.16.9, JPS 1917)↗ · And the days were not expired; (Prophets 1SA.18.26, JPS 1917)↗ · And I answered: Here am I. (Prophets 2SA.1.7, JPS 1917)↗

beach — Everyday, meaning 1: The area of sand or small stones next to the sea or a lake.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: As a verb, to bring a boat onto a beach, or for a whale to get stuck on land.↗ e.g. "a beached whale".↗ Example: We built sandcastles on the beach.↗ · Swim between the flags at the beach.↗ · The beach was crowded on Saturday.↗ · We found shells on the beach.↗ · Wear a hat at the beach.↗ · A whale was beached on the sand.↗ · Waves wash up seaweed onto the beach.↗ · Let's have a picnic at the beach.↗ · The beach is disgracefully crowded this season.↗

beacon — Everyday, meaning 1: A beacon is a light or fire on a hill, tower or coast that warns people or guides them, like a lighthouse light.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: A beacon is a device that sends out a radio signal to show where something or someone is, for example on a boat or for hikers.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: A beacon of something (hope, light) is a person or thing that gives others hope or shows the way.↗ Example: The lighthouse beacon flashed all night.↗ · People lit beacons on the hills to warn of danger.↗ · The hikers carried an emergency beacon.↗ · The rescue team followed the signal from the beacon.↗ · A Belisha beacon flashes at a zebra crossing.↗ · Her kindness was a beacon of hope in hard times.↗ · The ship's beacon showed where it had sunk.↗ · Plane pilots use radio beacons to find their way.↗ · I got a light, and in a few moments the red flames leaped up as a beacon to them.↗ · Now there was an appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers-in-wait, that they should make a great beacon of smoke rise up out of the city. — (Prophets JDG.20.38, JPS 1917)↗ · But when the beacon began to arise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and, behold, the whole of the city went up in smoke to heaven.↗ (Prophets JDG.20.40, JPS 1917)↗ · One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one, at the rebuke of five shall ye flee; till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on a hill.↗ (Prophets ISA.30.17, JPS 1917)↗