Words starting with B — 1,390 entries

The 1,390 dictionary words that begin with the letter B, in alphabetical order, each with its first definition. Accents do not affect filing: an accented initial is shelved under its base letter.

• Bomb1 senseThe atomic bomb; the capacity to launch a nuclear attack.
• Bombay5 sensesA locality in the Queanbeyan-Palerang council area, south eastern New South Wales, Australia.
• bombed1 senseintoxicated; drunk or high
• bomber5 sensesA military aircraft designed to carry and drop bombs.
• bombing3 sensesThe action of dropping bombs from the air.
• bombshell3 sensesSomething that is very surprising, shocking, amazing or sensational.
• Bon2 sensesAn indigenous Tibetan religion, in many ways akin to Tibetan Buddhism.
• Bonaparte2 sensesA Corsican surname, most notably borne by Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821).
• bond28 sensesA document constituting evidence of a long-term debt, by which the bond issuer (the borrower) is obliged to pay interest when due, and repay the…
• Bond5 sensesA surname originating as an occupation.
• bondage4 sensesThe state of being enslaved or the practice of slavery.
• bonded3 sensesSecured by bond.
• bonding5 sensesThe act by which something is bonded or joined together.
• bonds2 sensesimprisonment, captivity
• Bonds2 sensesA surname.
• bone28 sensesA composite material consisting largely of calcium phosphate and collagen and making up the skeleton of most vertebrates.
• Bone3 sensesA surname.
• boner5 sensesAn erect penis.
• Boner1 senseA surname.
• bones4 sensesA percussive folk musical instrument played as a pair in one hand, often made from bovine ribs.
• Bones2 sensesA surname.
• bonfire8 sensesA large, controlled outdoor fire lit to celebrate something or as a signal.
• bong11 sensesThe clang of a large bell.
• Bong2 sensesA Bengali (from West Bengal).
• bonjour2 sensesGood morning; hello.
• Bonjour1 senseA surname from French.
• bonkers1 senseMad; crazy.
• bonnet18 sensesA type of hat, once widely worn by women or children, held in place by ribbons tied under the chin; now uncommonly worn except in certain religious…
• Bonnet1 senseA surname from French.
• bonnie4 sensesMerry; happy.
• Bonnie1 senseA female given name from English.
• Bonny3 sensesA female given name from English.
• Bono1 senseA surname.
• bonus5 sensesSomething extra that is good; an added benefit.
• Bonus3 sensesA surname.
• boo9 sensesA loud exclamation intended to scare someone. Usually used when one has been hidden from the target, and then appears unexpectedly.
• Boo6 sensesA community in Nacka, Stockholm, central Sweden.
• boob6 sensesA mistake.
• booby9 sensesA stupid person.
• boogie8 sensesA piece of solid or semisolid mucus in or removed from the nostril cavity.
• booing1 senseA disapproving exclamation by a member of an audience.
• book30 sensesA collection of sheets of paper bound together to hinge at one edge, containing printed or written material, pictures, etc.
• Book2 sensesThe Qur'an, especially its supposed divine form inclusive of the true teachings previously provided to the "People of the Book", Jews and Christians.
• booker3 sensesOne who makes a reservation.
• Booker3 sensesA surname originating as an occupation for either a scribe or bookbinder, or a bleacher of cloth.
• bookie1 senseA bookmaker, being a person who, or business which, takes bets from the general public on sporting events and similar.
• booking5 sensesThe act or process of writing something down in a book or books, e.g. in accounting.
• books1 senseAccounting records.
• bookstore2 sensesA store where books are bought and sold.
• boom31 sensesTo make a loud, hollow, resonant sound.
• Boom1 senseA Belgian town and municipality in the southwest of the Flemish province of Antwerp.
• boomer13 sensesSomething that makes a booming sound.
• Boomer2 sensesA surname.
• booming4 sensesExperiencing a period of prosperity, or rapid economic growth.
• boon9 sensesA good thing; a thing to be thankful for or to appreciate duly.
• Boon3 sensesA surname
• Boone9 sensesA surname.
• boop4 sensesA low-pitched beeping sound.
• Boop1 senseA surname from German.
• boost10 sensesA push from behind or below, as to one who is endeavoring to climb.
• booster13 sensesSomething that boosts.
• boot41 sensesA heavy shoe that covers part of the leg.
• Boot2 sensesA surname.
• booth6 sensesA small stall for the display and sale of goods.
• Booth6 sensesA surname.
• boots4 sensesA condom.
• booty8 sensesA form of prize which, when a ship was captured at sea, could be distributed at once.
• Booty1 senseA surname.
• booze5 sensesAny alcoholic beverage.
• Booze1 senseA surname.
• bop12 sensesA very light smack, blow or punch.
• Bop1 senseBophuthatswana
• bora2 sensesAn initiation ceremony for males among the Aboriginal people of New South Wales.
• Bora3 sensesAn indigenous tribe of the Peruvian, Colombian and Brazilian Amazon.
• Bordeaux4 sensesThe capital city of Gironde department, France; the capital city of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine.
• Borden9 sensesA surname.
• border11 sensesThe line or frontier area separating political or geographical regions.
• Border1 senseA surname.
• borderline7 sensesNearly; not clearly on one side or the other of a border or boundary, ambiguous.
• Borders1 senseScottish Borders
• bore22 sensesTo inspire boredom in somebody.
• Bore1 senseA surname.
• bored2 sensesSuffering from boredom; mildly annoyed and restless through having nothing to do.
• boredom3 sensesThe state of being bored.
• borg1 senseSynonym of cyborg.
• Borg4 sensesA surname
• Borgia1 senseA surname. Famously borne by the House of Borgia, a prominent family during the Renaissance.
• boring10 sensesThe act or process of boring holes; such practice as an area of expertise in manufacturing.
• Boring4 sensesA surname.
• Boris2 sensesA male given name from the Slavic languages.
• born1 senseHaving from birth (or as if from birth) a certain quality or character; innate; inherited.
• Born1 senseA surname from English.
• borne1 sensecarried, supported.
• Borne1 senseA surname.
• borrow17 sensesTo receive (something) from somebody temporarily, expecting to return it.
• Borrow1 senseA surname.
• borrowed1 senseHaving been borrowed.
• borrowing3 sensesShoplifting.
• Bosco2 sensesA surname.
• Bosnia2 sensesA geographic region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, consisting of the northern three fourths of the country.
• bosom12 sensesThe seat of one's inner thoughts, feelings, etc.; one's secret feelings; desire.
• boss20 sensesOne who is in charge of something. One who oversees and directs the work of others; a supervisor.
• Boss1 senseA surname.
• bossy3 sensesTending to give orders to others, especially when unwarranted; domineering.
• Boston32 sensesA town and borough in Lincolnshire, England (OS grid ref TF3244).
• bot10 sensesThe larva of a botfly, which infests the skin of various mammals, producing warbles, or the nasal passage of sheep, or the stomach of horses.
• both4 sensesEach of the two; one and the other; referring to two individuals or items.
• Both1 senseA surname.
• bother8 sensesTo annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.
• bothered2 sensesAnnoyed; irritated.
• bothering2 sensesThat bothers; annoying, irritating.
• bottle16 sensesA container, typically made of glass or plastic and having a tapered neck, used primarily for holding liquids.
• bottled4 sensesPackaged in a bottle.
• bottom37 sensesThe lowest part of anything.
• Bottom1 senseA surname.
• bottoms1 senseThe bottom (trouser) part of clothing, as in pyjama bottoms, tracksuit bottoms, bikini bottoms.
• Bottoms1 senseA surname.
• bought6 sensesCompromised by money from special interests; corrupt.
• boulder5 sensesA large mass of stone detached from the surrounding land.
• Boulder7 sensesA town in Western Australia, merged with Kalgoorlie in 1989 as the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.
• boulevard4 sensesA broad, well-paved and landscaped thoroughfare.
• Boulevard1 senseA census-designated place in San Diego County, California, United States.
• bounce41 sensesTo change the direction of motion after hitting an obstacle.
• bounced2 sensesOf a cheque/check: refused by a bank because of insufficient funds.
• bouncer11 sensesA person or thing that bounces something, such as a ball.
• bouncing3 sensesHealthy; vigorous.
• bouncy3 sensesEasily bounced.
• bound20 sensesObliged (to).
• Bound1 senseA surname.
• boundary6 sensesThe dividing line or location between two areas.
• Bounds1 senseA surname.
• bounty7 sensesGenerosity; also (countable) an act of generosity.
• bouquet9 sensesAn arrangement or bunch of cut flowers; a nosegay.
• Bouquet1 senseA surname from French.
• bourbon3 sensesA whiskey distilled in the United States from a mixture of grains in which at least 51% is corn, aged in charred, new oak barrels.
• Bourbon9 sensesA European dynasty which reigns in Spain and formerly ruled the Kingdom of France.
• bourgeois10 sensesOf or relating to the middle class (often derogatory), and their presumed overly conventional, conservative, and materialistic values.
• Bourgeois1 senseA surname from French.
• bout9 sensesA period of something, especially one painful or unpleasant, like an illness.
• Bout1 senseA surname
• boutique4 sensesA small shop, especially one that sells fashionable clothes, jewelry and the like.
• bow25 sensesA weapon made of a curved piece of wood or other flexible material whose ends are connected by a string, used for shooting arrows.
• Bow8 sensesA surname.
• bowel6 sensesA part or division of the intestines, usually the large intestine.
• bowels5 sensesThe deepest or innermost part.
• bowie1 senseA Bowie knife.
• Bowie5 sensesA surname.
• bowl29 sensesA roughly hemispherical container used to hold, mix, prepare or present food, such as salad, fruit or soup, or other items. As much as is held by a…
• bowler5 sensesOne who engages in the sport of bowling.
• Bowler4 sensesA surname originating as an occupation.
• bowling7 sensesA game played by rolling a ball down an alley and trying to knock over a triangular group of ten pins; tenpin bowling/fivepin bowling
• Bowling4 sensesA surname.
• bowls2 sensesA precision sport where the goal is to roll biased balls (weighted on one side, and called bowls) closer to a smaller white ball (the jack or kitty)…
• bowman2 sensesA man who uses a bow; an archer.
• Bowman12 sensesA surname originating as an occupation for a bowman.
• box49 sensesSenses relating to a three-dimensional object or space. A cuboid space; a cuboid container, often with a hinged lid.
• Box3 sensesA surname.
• boxed3 sensesPacked into a box or boxes.
• boxer6 sensesA participant in a boxing match; a fighter who boxes.
• Boxer2 sensesA surname.
• boxers2 sensesBoxer shorts.
• boxing4 sensesA sport where two opponents punch each other with gloved fists to head and torso; the object being to score more points by the end of the match or by…
• boy20 sensesA male child.
• boycott2 sensesTo abstain, either as an individual or a group, from using, buying, or dealing with someone or some organization as an expression of protest.
• Boycott2 sensesA hamlet in Stowe parish, Buckinghamshire, England (OS grid ref SP6636).
• Boyd13 sensesA Scottish and Irish surname from Scottish Gaelic.
• boyfriend5 sensesA male partner in an unmarried romantic relationship.
• Boyle6 sensesA surname from Irish.
• boys1 senseThe testicles.
• Boys1 senseA surname.
• bozo1 senseA stupid, foolish, or ridiculous person, especially a man.
• Bozo2 sensesA member of a West African ethnic group located predominantly along the Niger River in Mali, famous for their fishing
• bp1 senseStylised name of British Petroleum.
• Br2 sensesBelarusian.
• bra2 sensesAn item of clothing, usually underwear worn to support the breasts.
• Bra1 senseA city in Cuneo, Piedmont, Italy; known for being the birthplace of the Bra sausage, and the Bra cheese.
• brace25 sensesA curved instrument or handle of iron or wood, for holding and turning bits, etc.; a bitstock.
• Brace1 senseA surname from Old French.
• bracelet4 sensesA band or chain worn around the wrist as jewelry/jewellery or an ornament.
• bracelets1 sensehandcuffs
• braces3 sensesA device worn on the teeth to straighten them.
• brad5 sensesA thin, small nail, with a slight projection at the top on one side instead of a head, or occasionally with a small domed head, similar to that of an…
• Brad2 sensesA diminutive of the male given names Bradley, Bradly, or Bradford, also used as a formal given name.
• Braddock7 sensesA surname.
• Bradford34 sensesA number of places in England: A city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire.
• Bradley29 sensesA placename: A locale in the United Kingdom: A locale in England: A former civil parish in Cheshire, part of Tushingham-cum-Grindley, Macefen and…
• Bradshaw12 sensesThe name of some places in Northern England. A village in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester (OS grid ref SD7312).
• brady3 sensesBradycardia.
• Brady8 sensesA habitational surname from Old English of English origin.
• brag7 sensesA boast or boasting; bragging; ostentatious pretence or self-glorification.
• bragging1 senseThe act of one who brags.
• braid19 sensesTo weave together, intertwine (strands of fibers, ribbons, etc.); to arrange (hair) in braids.
• Braid1 senseA surname.
• brain16 sensesThe control center of the central nervous system of an animal located in the skull, consisting of the cerebrum, cerebellum, and brainstem, which is…
• Brain1 senseA surname.
• brains3 sensesThe substance of a brain, as a material or foodstuff.
• brake25 sensesA device used to slow or stop the motion of a wheel, or of a vehicle, usually by friction (although other resistive forces, such as electromagnetic…
• Brake1 senseA surname.
• bran3 sensesThe broken coat of the seed of wheat, rye, or other cereal grain, separated from the flour or meal by sifting or bolting; the coarse, chaffy part of…
• Bran1 senseA surname.