B Flashcards
babble (v.) (n.)
to chatter idly
The little girl babbled about her doll.
badger (v.)
to pester; to annoy
She was forced to change her telephone number because she was badgered by obscene phone calls.
badinage (n.)
teasing conversation
Her friends at work greeted the news of her engagement with cheerful badinage.
baffle (v.)
to frustrate; to perplex
The new code baffled the enemy agents.
bait (v.)
to harass; to tease
The school bully baited the smaller children, terrorizing them.
baleful (adj.)
deadly; having a malign influence; ominous
The fortune teller made baleful predictions of terrible things to come.
balk (v.)
to foil or thwart; to stop short; to refuse to go on
When the warden learned that several inmates were planning to escape, he took steps to balk their attempt. However, he balked at punishing them by shackling them to the walls of their cells.
ballast (n.)
heavy substance used to add stability or weight
The ship was listing badly to one side; it was necessary to shift the ballast in the hold to get her back on an even keel.
balm (n.)
something that relieves pain
Friendship is the finest balm for the pangs of disappointed love.
balmy (adj.)
mild; fragrant
A balmy breeze refreshed us after the sultry (=hot and humid) blast.
banal (adj.)
hackneyed; commonplace; trite; lacking originality
The hack writer’s worn-out cliches made his comic sketch seem banal. He even restored to the banality of having someone slip on a banana peel!
bandy (v.)
to discuss lightly or glibly; to exchange (words) heatedly
While the president was happy to bandy patriotic generalizations with anyone who would listen to him, he refused to bandy words with unfriendly reporters at the press conference.
bane (n.)
cause of ruin
Lucy’s little brother was the bane of her existence; his attempts to make her life miserable worked so well that she could have poisoned him with ratsbane for having such a baneful effect.
bantering (adj.)
good natured ridiculing
They resented his bantering remarks because they thought he was being sarcastic.
barb (n.)
sharp projection from fishhook, etc.; openly cutting remark
If you were a politician, which would you prefer, being caught on the barb of a fishhook or being subjected to malicious verbal barbs? Who can blame the president if he’s happier fishing than back in the capitol listening to his critics’ barbed remarks?
bard (n.)
poet
The ancient bard Homer sang of the fall of Troy.
baroque (adj.)
highly ornate
Accustomed to the severe lines of contemporary buildings, the architecture students found the flamboyance of baroque architecture amusing.
barrage (n.)
barrier laid down by artillery (=large caliber guns used in warfare on land) fire
The company was forced to retreat through the barrage of heavy cannons.
barren (adj.)
desolate; fruitless and unproductive; lacking
Looking out at the trackless, barren desert, Indiana Jones feared that his search for the missing expedition would prove barren.
barricade (n.)
hastily put together defensive barrier; obstacle
Marius and his fellow students hurriedly improvised a rough barricade to block police access to the students’ quarter.
Malcolm and his brothers barricaded themselves in their bedroom to keep their mother from seeing the hole in the bedroom floor.
barterer (n.)
trader
The barterer exchanged trinkets for the natives’ furs. It seemed smarter to barter than to pay cash.
bask (v.)
to luxuriate; to take pleasure in warmth
Basking on the beach, she relaxed so completely that she fell asleep.
bastion (n.)
fortress; defense
The villagers fortified the town hall, hoping this improvised bastion could protect them from the guerillas’ raids.
bate (v.)
to let down; to restrain
Until it was time to open the presents, the children had to bate their curiosity.
bauble (n.)
trinket; trifle
The child was delighted with the bauble she had won in the grab bag.
bawdy (adj.)
indecent; obscene (=offensive or disgusting by standards of morality and decency)
Jack took offense at Jill’s bawdy remarks.
beam (n.)
ray of light; long piece of metal or wood; course of a radio signal
If a beam of light falls on you, it illuminates you; if a beam of iron falls on you, it eliminates you.
beam (v.)
smile radiantly
No one feels like beaming when crushed by an iron beam.
beatific (adj.)
giving bliss; blissful
The beatific smile on the child’s face made us very happy.
beatitude (n.)
blessedness; state of bliss
Growing closer to God each day, the mystic achiever a state of indescribable beatitude.
bedraggle (v.)
to wet thoroughly; to stain with mud
We were so bedraggled by the severe storm that we had to change into dry clothing.
beeline (n.)
direct, quick route
As soon as the movie was over, Jim made a beeline for the exit.
befuddle (v.)
to confuse thoroughly
His attempts to clarify the situation succeeded only in befuddling her further.
beget (v.)
to father (=to be the creator of); to produce; to give rise to
One good turn may deserve another; it does not necessarily beget another.
begrudge (v.)
to resent
I begrudge every minute I have to spend attending meetings; they’re a complete waste of time.
beguile (v.)
to mislead or delude; to pass time
With flattery and big talk of easy money, the con men beguiled Kyle into betting his allowance on the shell game/ Broke, he beguiled himself during the long hours by playing solitaire.
behemoth (n.)
huge creature; monstrous animal
Sportscasters nicknamed the linebacker “The Behemoth.”
belabor (v.)
to explain or go over excessively or to a ridiculous degree; attack verbally
The debate coach warned her student not to bore the audience by belaboring her point.
belated (adj.)
delayed
He apologized for his belated note of condolence to the widow of his friend and explained that he had just learned of her husband’s untimely (=happening or done at an unsuitable time) death.
beleaguer (v.)
to besiege (=to surround with armed forces in order to capture it or force its surrender) or attack; to harass
The babysitter was surrounded by a crowd of unmanageable brats who relentlessly beleaguered her.
belie (v.)
to contradict; to give a false impression
His coarse, hard-bitten exterior belied his inner sensitivity.
belittle (v.)
to disparage or depreciate; to put down
Parents should not belittle their children’s early attempts at drawing, but should encourage their efforts.
Barry was a put-down artist: he was a genius at belittling people and making them feel small.
bellicose (adj.)
warlike
His bellicose disposition alienated his friends.
belligerent (adj.)
quarrelsome
Whenever he had too much to drink, he became belligerent and tried to pick fights with strangers.
bemoan (v.)
to lament; to express disapproval of
The widow bemoaned the death of her beloved husband.
Although critics bemoaned the serious flaws in the author’s novels, each year his latest book topped the best-seller list.
bemused (adj.)
confused; lost in thought; preoccupied
Jill studied the garbled instructions with a bemused look on her face.
benediction (n.)
blessing
The appearance of the sun after the many rainy days was like a benediction.
benefactor (n.)
gift giver; patron (=a person who gives financial or other support to a person, organization, cause, or activity)
Scrooge later became Tiny Tim’s benefactor and gave him gifts.
beneficial (adj.)
helpful; useful
Tiny Time’s cheerful good nature had a beneficial influence on Scrooge’s once-uncharitable disposition.
beneficiary (n.)
person entitled to benefits or proceeds of an insurance policy or will.
In Scrooge’s will, he made Tiny Tim his beneficiary: everything he left would go to Tiny Tim.
benevolent (adj.)
generous; charitable
Mr. Fezzwig was a benevolent employer, who wished to make Christmas merrier for young Scrooge and his other employees.
benign (adj.)
kindly; favorable; not malignant
Through her benign smile and gentle bearing made Miss Marple seem a sweet little old lady, in reality she was a though-minded, shrewd observer of human nature.
bent (adj.)
determined
She wanted to succeed; she was bent on advancing in the business world.
bent (n.)
natural talent or inclination
She has a true bent for calculations and could compute complex numbers in seconds.
bequeath (v.)
to leave to someone by a will; to hand down
Though Maud had intended to bequeath the family home to her nephew, she died before changing her will.
berate (v.)
to scold strongly
He feared she would berate him for his forgetfulness.
bereavement (n.)
state of being deprived of something valuable or beloved
His friends gathered to console him upon his sudden bereavement.
bereft (adj.)
deprived of; lacking; desolate because of a loss
The foolish gambler soon found himself bereft of funds.
