baa
nouninterjectionverbnounattested in dialogue
- United Kingdom/[bɑː]/
- United States/[bæ]/
- United States/[bɑ]/
- /[bæ̰ː]/
- //bɑː//
The characteristic cry or bleating of a sheep or (broader) a sheep or goat.
noun
- 1
The characteristic cry or bleating of a sheep or (broader) a sheep or goat.
Near-synonyms: bleat, bleating
Etymology
Compare German bäh, mäh; an imitative word. Notes on phonological development The pronunciation /bɑː/ is perhaps a development from earlier /bæː/ reflecting the shift of /æː/ to /ɑː/ during the 18th and 19th centuries. Compare Early Modern English bae, bea, both "to baa", respectively displaying the then current pronunciation of Middle English /aː/ as /æː/ and the failure of Middle English /ɛː/ to raise, and the replacement of mew with meow for another instance where recent sound change has made onomatopoeia opaque.
interjection
- 1
The characteristic cry of a sheep or (broader) a sheep or goat.
verb
- 1
To make the characteristic cry of a sheep or (broader) a sheep or goat.
Near-synonyms: blat, bleat (broad enough to include calves too)
He treble baas for help, but none can get.
The lamb bunted several irresponsive objects - never its dam's udder - baaing listlessly.
noun
- 1
The letter ب in the Arabic script.
Etymology
Borrowed from Arabic بَاء (bāʔ).
Forms
- plural
- baas
- past tense
- baaed
- past participle
- baaed
- present participle
- baaing
- third person singular
- baas
baa · The characteristic cry or bleating of a sheep or (broader) a sheep or goat.
Baa · An administrative atoll of the Maldives, officially named…baba · A kind of sponge cake soaked in rum-flavoured syrup.Baba · A male Peranakan.