Bowl and boll are two words that are pronounced in the same way but are spelled differently and have different meanings, which makes them homophones. We will examine the definitions of bowl and boll, where these two words came from and some examples of their use in sentences.
Bowl may mean 1.) a deep dish suitable for holding food or other items 2. ) the contents of a bowl 3.) a playoff game to determine the winner of a certain league in sports such as football 4.) to roll the ball toward the pins in a game of bowling 5.) to propel the ball toward the batsman in a game of cricket 6.) in British English, to move rapidly in a certain direction. The word bowl is derived from the fifteenth century word bowl which meant a wooden ball. Bowl may be used as a noun or a verb, related words are bowls, bowled, bowling, bowler.
A boll is the round seedpod of certain plants, particularly cotton or flax. Boll is derived from the Dutch word bolle which means rounded object, and the Latin word bulla which means bubble. The plural form of boll is bolls.
Examples
Beyoncé is one of only a handful of acts to play the Super Bowl twice—she starred in the game’s halftime show in 2013 and 2016—three times if you count last weekend’s Coachella gig, and four if you count tonight’s as well. (Forbes)
Start with a pot large enough to hold the vegetables, pork, and 10 cups of liquid; garbure is a meal in a bowl. (The Boston Globe)
“But I did bowl a 196 on Monday and a 200 game (one of her all-time highs) a few months ago. I am competitive.” (The Maryville Daily Times)
One legislator poured out his emotions for the cotton boll since cotton was king in Texas in those days. (The Sherman Denison Herald Democrat)