Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
adj
Abbreviation of born.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, not-comparable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
character
The second letter of the English alphabet, called bee and written in the Latin script.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: letter, lowercase
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
name
A programming language from which C is derived.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: computer-languages, computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
The quantity one billion (1,000,000,000), usually used to signify a sum of money.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable, usually
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
The grade of pencil, “black”, that makes darker marks than grade HB but lighter marks than grade 2B; a pencil with soft lead.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: UK, uncountable, usually
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Abbreviation of bishop.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, uncountable, usually
Topics: board-games, chess, games
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
The number of balls faced by a batsman.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable, usually
Topics: ball-games, cricket, games, hobbies, lifestyle, sports
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Bass.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: uncountable, usually
Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Bastard.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Australia, countable, euphemistic, usually
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Bitch.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, euphemistic, usually
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Abbreviation of blood or blud: used to address a friend, especially a male.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Multicultural-London-English, abbreviation, alt-of, uncountable, usually
Qualifier: chiefly African-American Vernacular
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
A B cell.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, usually
Topics: immunology, medicine, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
A personality type describing people who are relaxed and easygoing and able to engage in leisure activities without worrying about work.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
An academic grade, better than a C and worse than an A.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Signifies a second-tier or second class of a given commodity, group, or category, as in B-movie, B-list, etc.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
The alternate or secondary part, such as the back side of a phonograph record. Contrasted with ‘A’, which is the primary part.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
The seventh note in the C major scale.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
num
The second numeral symbol of the English alphabet, called bee and written in the Latin script.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: lowercase
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
symbol
latitude in the galactic coordinate system
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: astronomy, natural-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
symbol
barn
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: natural-sciences, physical-sciences, physics
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
symbol
bit
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
symbol
bye
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: ball-games, cricket, games, hobbies, lifestyle, sports
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
symbol
big
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Qualifier: size
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
symbol
byte
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Abbreviation of be.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: Internet, abbreviation, alt-of
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
aerobic rod-shaped spore-producing bacterium; often occurring in chainlike formations; found primarily in soil
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: bacillus
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: eubacteria, eubacterium, true bacteria
Narrower terms: Bacillus anthracis, anthrax bacillus, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus globigii, grass bacillus, hay bacillus, Yersinia pestis
noun
the blood group whose red cells carry the B antigen
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: type B, group B
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: blood group, blood type
noun
the 2nd letter of the Roman alphabet
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: letter, letter of the alphabet, alphabetic character
noun
(physics) a unit of nuclear cross section; the effective circular area that one particle presents to another as a target for an encounter
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: barn
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: area unit, square measure
noun
a logarithmic unit of sound intensity equal to 10 decibels
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: Bel
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: sound unit
noun
a trivalent metalloid element; occurs both in a hard black crystal and in the form of a yellow or brown powder
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: boron, atomic number 5
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: chemical element, element
noun
originally thought to be a single vitamin but now separated into several B vitamins
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: B-complex vitamin, B complex, vitamin B complex, vitamin B, B vitamin
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: water-soluble vitamin
Narrower terms: choline, inositol, pantothenic acid, pantothen, vitamin B1, thiamine, thiamin, aneurin, antiberiberi factor, vitamin B12, cobalamin, cyanocobalamin, antipernicious anemia factor, vitamin B2, vitamin G, riboflavin, lactoflavin, ovoflavin, hepatoflavin, vitamin B6, pyridoxine, pyridoxal, pyridoxamine, adermin, vitamin Bc, vitamin M, folate, folic acid, folacin, pteroylglutamic acid, pteroylmonoglutamic acid, niacin, nicotinic acid, biotin, vitamin H
History
From the Old English letter B, from 7th century replacement by Latin B of the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc letter ᛒ (b, beorc).
Possibly a contraction of BCPL (“Basic Combined Programming Language”), the name of a programming language from which B was derived. Dennis Ritchie (a coworker of B’s designer, Ken Thompson) speculated that B might be based on Bon (the name of an earlier, but unrelated, programming language that Thompson designed for use on Multics), itself either from Bonnie (the name of Thompson’s wife) or “(according to an encyclopedia quotation in its manual), after a religion whose rituals involve the murmuring of magic formulas”.
From abbreviations of various terms beginning with or containing the letter ‘B’. * (billion): abbreviation of billion * (cricket): abbreviation of balls * (bitch): abbreviation of bitch
From the use of the letter ‘B’ as an arbitrary label among other letter labels. * (personality type): from contrast with the letter ‘A’ and its corresponding personality type * (academic grade): from the position of the letter ‘B’ in the English alphabet
Abbreviations.
Across languages
8 source translations are retained for this English entry.
