A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
- A big ask
- Annual, perennial or biennial
- Autobiography vs biography
- Babe in the woods
- Baby blues
- Baby boomer
- Bachelor’s or bachelors degree and master’s or masters degree
- Back in the day= at some unspecified time in the past.
- Back seat vs. backseatBackseat is an adjective. When seat functions as a noun, make back seat two words.
- Back the wrong horse and bet on the wrong horse
- Back to square one
- Back to the drawing board
- Back up vs. backupBackup is a noun and an adjective. The verb is two words---back up.
- Backhanded compliment and left-handed compliment
- Backseat driver
- Backstab
- Backward vs backwards
- Backwater or backwaters
- Backyard, back yard, back-yardThe adjective is backyard or back-yard, and the noun is usually back yard, but there is little consistency in real-world use.
- Bacteria vs virus
- Bad apple
- Bad hair day
- Bad penny
- Bad rap vs. bad wrapA bad wrap is dishonor arising from false accusations or trumped-up charges. A bad wrap is an unappetizing lunch.
- Bad vs badly
- Bae vs bay
- Bail vs. baleBale refers to clumps of hay and the making of them. Bail has a number of definitions, including (1) money given in exchange for prison release, and (2) to remove water from a boat.
- Bailiwick
- Bailout, bail out, and bail-outThe adjective and noun are bailout or bail-out. The verb is two words---bail out.
- Bain-marie vs double boiler
- Bait and switch and switch selling
- Bait vs. bateIn modern English, bate appears almost exclusively in the phrase bated breath.
- Bald-faced vs. boldfaceBald-faced = (1) shaved; (2) bold or brazen. Boldface = bolded text.
- Balderdash
- Ball vs bawl
- Balmy vs. barmyBalmy = mild and pleasant. Barmy = weak-minded or idiotic.
- Baloney vs. bolognaBologna = a type of sausage. Baloney = nonsense.
- Bamboozle
- Ban vs. barThings are banned. People are barred. Actions are either.
- Band (together) vs. bandy (about)Band together = cooperate. Bandy about = toss around, literally or figuratively.
- Band vs banned
- Bane
- Bank on it and take it to the bank
- Bankster= a new word referring to a banker who engages in shady practices.
- Baptise vs. baptize
- Baptism by fire and baptism of fire
- Bar mitzvah and bat mitzvahBar mitzvah = ceremony for 13-year-old Jewish boys. Bat mitzvah = ceremony for 13-year-old Jewish girls.
- Barbecue vs. barbequeBarbecue is the standard modern spelling. Barbeque is a latter-day variant especially common in the names of restaurants and products.
- Barbed wireBarbed wire is the standard form.
- Bard= a professional poet.
- Bard vs barred
- Bare bones
- Bare vs. bearBare = (1) naked or unadorned, (2) to uncover. Bear has lots of definitions, none of which have to do with nakedness or uncovering.
- Bark is worse than one’s bite
- Bark vs barque
- Barking up the wrong tree
- Barn burner
- Barnstorm
- Baron vs barren
- Basal, basil, or Basel
- Base vs bass
- Based vs baste
- Basis (on a daily basis, on a regular basis, etc.)Basis is often a part of wordy constructions that can be shortened to one-word adverbial equivalents.
- Basis vs bases
- Basket case
- Bass vs bass
- Bastion
- Bath or bathe
- Bathos vs pathos
- Baton vs batten
- Batten the hatchesto prepare for an imminent emergency.
- Batting cleanup
- Battle royal
- Bawdy vs body
- Bawl out= to scold loudly or reprimand harshly.
- Bazaar vs. bizarreBazaar = a market or sale. Bizarre = very odd.
- Be my guest
- Be patient or have patience
- Beach vs beech
- Beachcomber
- Bean counter
- Bear market, bull market, bearish, bullishA bull market trends upward. A bear market trends downward.
- Beat a dead horse and flog a dead horse
- Beat around the bush
- Beat or beaten
- Beat someone to the punch
- Beat swords into plowshares and beat swords into ploughshares
- Beat vs beet
- Beau vs bow
- Bechdel test and Bechdel-Wallace test
- Beck and call vs beckon call
- Beckon call= eggcorn for beck and call.
- Bed of roses
- Beelinea straight, swift course.
- Been around the block
- Been there, done that
- Beer vs bier
- Beg off
- Beg the question (usage)= raise the question.
- Began vs begun
- Beggar belief= to strain the limits of credulity.
- Beggars can’t be choosers
- Begging the question (fallacy)= the fallacy committed when someone uses a premise to support itself.
- Begrudge
- Behalf
- Behavior vs. behaviourBehavior in American English; behaviour everywhere else.
- Behest vs bequest
- Behind the eight ball
- Behold and beholden
- Behoove
- BelatedSomething that is late is belated.
- Belay vs belie
- Belie= (1) to give false representation to, (2) to show [something] to be false, or (3) to contradict.
- Bell the cat
- Bell vs belle
- Belle vs beau
- Bellwether= a leading indicator of future trends.
- Bellyache
- Below the belt and hit below the belt
- Benchmark
- Benefactor vs patron
- Benefit of the doubt
- Benefiting vs benefitting
- Bent or bended
- Bereaved vs. bereftBereaved = describes someone who lost a loved one by death. Bereft = describes people who have lost inanimate things.
- Berry vs bury
- Berserk= frenetically upset or violent.
- Berth vs birth
- Beside oneself and beside the point
- Beside or besides
- Besotted
- Bespeak vs bespoke
- Bespeckled or bespectacled
- Best of both worlds
- Best-laid plans
- Better late than never
- Better safe than sorry
- Better vs bettor
- Between a rock and a hard place
- Betwixt= between.
- Beyond the pale= outside the realm of acceptability.
- Bezel vs embezzle
- Biannual vs. biennialBiannual: twice a year. Biennial: once every two years.
- Biannual, biennial and semiannual
- Biceps and tricepsBiceps and triceps are technically singular nouns, but they're informally treated as plural, with bicep and tricep being the informal singular forms.
- Bid, bade, biddenBid is now usually uninflected in the past tense and as a past participle, and bade and bidden are fading out of the language.
- Big cheese
- Big fish in a small pond
- Big kahuna
- Big league and bush league
- Big shot
- Big-upsa noun used (1) to acknowledge someone, or (2) to express approval or respect for someone.
- Bight vs. biteBite is what you do with your mouth. A bight is a loop in a rope or a bend in a shoreline.
- Bigwig
- Bill and coo
- Bill of goods
- Billed vs build
- Bimonthly and semimonthly
- Binge-watch
- Bingeing or binging
- Bingo
- Birds of a feather flock together
- Bisect vs dissect
- Bisexual or pansexual
- Bit vs. bittenBit is the past tense. Bitten is the past participle.
- Bite off more than one can chew
- Bite one's tongue
- Bite the bullet
- Bite, byte or bight
- Bite-size or bite-sized
- Bitter pill to swallow and hard pill to swallow
- Bivouac
- Biweekly vs semiweekly
- Black Friday
- Black market
- Black out vs blackout
- Black sheep
- Blackball
- Blackmail vs extortion
- Blah blah blah
- Blandish vs brandish
- Blaspheme= the verb corresponding to blasphemy.
- Blatant vs. flagrantThey are mostly interchangeable.
- Blather vs blabber
- Blather vs. blitherThey mean roughly the same. Blather is more common.
- Blench vs blanch
- Blessed vs. blestBlessed is the modern form. Blest is archaic.
- Blessing in disguise
- Blew, blown, or blowed
- Bling
- Blitzkrieg
- Bloc vs. blockA bloc is a group with common interests working together.
- Blockbuster
- Blond vs. blondeIf you wish to observe the gender distinction, use blond in reference to males and blonde in reference to females. The gender distinction is not necessary, though.
- Blooper
- Bloviate
- Blow a fuse and blow a gasket
- Blow hot and cold
- Blow off steam and let off steam
- Blow one’s top, blow one’s stack, blow one’s fuse
- Blow someone's cover
- Blow the whistle and whistle-blower
- Blow your own trumpet and toot your own horn
- Blow-by-blow account
- Blowhard and windbag
- Blowout vs. blow outBlow out is a verb. Blowout is a noun and an adjective.
- Blowup vs. blow upBlowup (sometimes blow-up) is a noun or an adjective. The verb is two words---blow up.
- Blue blood
- Blue collar, white collarBlue-collar describes people and things associated with the working class. White-collar describes people and things associated with office workers and management.
- Bluetooth
- Board vs bored
- Bob's your uncle
- Bobble vs bauble
- Bobbsey twins
- Bode vs bowed
- Bodega
- Body politic
- Bogeyman
- Boggle the mind and mind-boggling
- Bohemian
- Bokeh
- Bold as brass
- Bolder vs boulder
- Boldface text
- Bollocks vs bollocking
- Bombogenesis
- Bon vivant
- Bona fide, bona fidesIn modern use, bona fide means real or genuine, and bona fides are one's credentials. People who know Latin or are familiar with the legal use of these terms might consider the popular usage questionable.
- Bone of contention
- Bone to pick
- Bone vs debone
- Bonhomie
- Booby hatch
- Boondocks vs boonies
- Boondoggle
- Boot camp
- Boots on the ground
- Booze vs boos
- Border vs boarder
- Bore, boor, boarBore = something boarding. Boor = a clumsy or ill-mannered person. Boar = a wild pig.
- Born with a silver spoon in one's mouth
- Borne vs. born Borne is synonymous with carried. Born is mainly a passive verb used in relation to birth.
- Borough, burro, burrowBurro = donkey. Burrow = 1. a hole; 2. to dig a hole. Borough = an administrative division.
- Bot vs bought
- Botanic vs. botanicalBotanical is the preferred form in 21st century English. Botanic survives mainly in institutional names.
- Bottom line
- Bough or bow
- Bought the farm and gone for a Burton
- Boughten= an archaic form now considered incorrect.
- Bound vs. boundedBound is the past tense of binded. The verb bound (to form a boundary or to spring) is inflected bounded.
- Bounteous vs bountiful
- Bourgeois, bourgeoisie Bourgeois is (1) an adjective describing things of or characteristic of the middle class, and (2) a noun referring to a middle-class person. Bourgeoisie is a noun denoting the middle class in general.
- Bow and scrape
- Bow vs bow
- Bowdlerize= to remove (from a work of art) parts considered to be offensive.
- Bowl over
- Bowl vs boll
- Bowl vs bowel
- Bowled vs bold
- Boy vs buoy
- Braggadocio
- Braggart vs bragger
- Braid vs abrade
- Braid vs brayed
- Brain trust vs think tank
- BrainchildFiguratively, something born of a brain. In its conventional sense, it doesn't denote people.
- Brainwash
- Braise, brays, or braze
- Brake vs break
- Brand spanking new
- Bravado
- Breach, breech, broachBreach = (1) an opening or gap; (2) to make an opening or gap. Breech = (1) the hind portion of a person or (2) the back of a gun. Broach = (1) to make a hole to draw off liquid; (2) to bring up for discussion.
- Bread and butter
- Bread vs bred
- Breadcrumbs, breadcrumb trail and trail of breadcrumbs
- Break the bank
- Break up vs. breakupBreakup: noun, adjective. Break up: verb.
- Breastfeeding, breastfed, breastfeed, etc.The one-word forms have gained ground and are now considered acceptable except in the New York Times and a few other notable publications.
- Breath vs. breadth (vs. width)Breath is what you breathe in and out of your lungs. Breadth is mostly synonymous with width, though they have differentiated in usage.
- Breath vs. breatheBreath is the noun. Breathe is the verb.
- Breeches vs britches
- Brewed vs brood
- Brews vs bruise
- Brexit and Grexit
- Bric-a-brac and knick-knack
- Brick and mortar
- Bridezilla
- Bridle vs. bridalBridle: horses. Bridal: weddings.
- Brief vs debrief
- Bright vs. briteBright is the standard spelling. Brite has no standard definitions of its own. It appears mainly in product names.
- Bring home the bacon
- Bring one's A-game
- Bring the house down and bring down the house
- Bring vs take
- Briton= the most polite term for a British person.
- Briton vs Britain
- Broach vs. broochBroach = (1) to bring up a subject; (2) to pierce in order to draw off liquid. Brooch = a large decorative pin or clasp.
- Bromance
- Bromide
- Bronx cheer and blow a raspberry
- Brought vs bought
- Brouhaha= a fuss or commotion, especially over something of exaggerated importance.
- Brown-nose and brownnose
- Brownie points
- Browse vs brows
- Brung, brang= colloquial variants of brought.
- Brussels sproutDon't forget the s at the end of Brussels.
- Buck naked, butt nakedBuck naked is probably older and might be considered less vulgar, but butt naked is common as well. Neither is wrong.
- Bucket list
- Buckle up vs buck up
- Buffer vs. buffetBuffet = to hit or beat repeatedly or to beat back. Buffer = to lessen impact or to act as a moderating force between opposing things.
- Buffet vs buffet
- Bugbear or bugaboo
- Build up vs. buildupBuildup is a noun and an adjective. Build up is a verb.
- Building castles in the air
- Bulk, balk, baulkBulk refers to size. To balk (sometimes baulk in British English) is to stop short and refuse to go on.
- Bullion vs boullion
- Bullseye or bull's eye
- Bully pulpita position from which someone, especially a president, can exert great influence.
- Bum steer
- Bum-rush vs bum's rush
- Bumper crop
- Bumpkin
- Bun in the oven
- Bundle of joy
- Bunk vs debunk
- Bunk, bunkum, buncombe= empty or nonsensical talk.
- Bunny vs Bunnie
- Bunt vs Bundt
- Bupkis= absolutely nothing.
- Burger vs burgher
- Burgle vs. burglarizeBurgle is British. Burglarize is American.
- Burn one's bridges and burn one's boats
- Burn the candle at both ends
- Burned vs. burntBurned is favored in North America. Burnt is favored everywhere else.
- Burning the midnight oil
- Burnish vs tarnish
- Burnout vs. burn outBurnout is a noun and an adjective. Burn out is a verb.
- Burrow vs borrow
- Burst one's bubble and pop one's bubble
- BurstedBursted is considered incorrect and always bears replacement with the uninflected form.
- Burthen= archaism for burden.
- Bury one's head in the sand
- Bury the hatchet
- Bus stop vs. busstopIt is two words.
- Bused, bussed, or bust
- Buses vs. bussesBuses is the standard plural in 21st-century English.
- Bust one's chops and lick one's chops
- Busybody
- But vs butt
- But vs. yetThey are interchangeable as conjunctions but not as adverbs.
- Butt heads and bump heads
- Butt of a joke
- Butter wouldn't melt in his mouth
- Butterfingers
- Butterflies in one’s stomach
- Butterfly effect
- Buy a lemon
- Buy, by or bye
- Buzzword
- By and by vs. by the byBy and by = soon or after a while. By the by = by the way.
- By dint of= because of, or due to the efforts of.
- By hook or by crook
- By the same token
- By the skin of one's teeth
- By the way and BTW
- By, bye and buy
- Byproduct
- Bête noire= something someone fears or that is very troubling. French for black beast.
- Car hood and car bonnet
- Decathlon, heptathlon, pentathlon, triathlon and biathlon
- Devil vs bedevil
- Dingo's breakfast
- Dirigible or blimp
- Double down vs buckle down
- Due to vs because of
- Fire and brimstone
- Fringe benefit
- Fuddle
- Have a bee in one's bonnet
- Have someone buffaloed
- Hobo, tramp, bum, or gutter punk
- Honor among thieves and no honor among thieves
- Kerfuffle vs brouhaha
- Knighted vs benighted
- Knuckle down and buckle down
- Magic bullet and silver bullet
- May be or maybe
- More bang for one's buck and bigger bang for one's buck
- On accident vs by accident
- On the radar, off the radar, under the radar, below the radar, and above the radar
- Once in a blue moon
- Other fish to fry and bigger fish to fry
- Parentheses vs brackets
- Poor-mouth vs bad-mouth
- Pram, baby carriage and baby buggy
- Shopping cart or buggy
- Since vs because
- The be-all and end-all
- The big picture
- The birds and the bees
- To the bitter end
- Wink vs blink