not counting head, arms and legs.
NOUN 3 A body is a dead person.
bog bogs NOUN
A bog is an area of land that is always wet and spongy.
boil boils, boiling, boiled
VERB 1 When liquid boils it gets very hot. It bubbles and steam rises from it.
VERB 2 If you boil food, you cook it in boiling water.
NOUN 3 A boil is a painful red swelling on the skin.
bold bolder, boldest
ADJECTIVE 1 Someone who is bold is not afraid of risk or danger.
ADJECTIVE 2 Letters that are in bold type are thicker than ordinary printed letters.
bolt bolts, bolting, bolted
NOUN 1 A bolt is a long round metal pin with a flat end. It screws into a nut to fasten things.
NOUN 2 A bolt is a metal bar that you can slide across to keep a door shut.
VERB 3 If you bolt a door or window, you lock it with a bolt.
VERB 4 When a person or animal bolts, they suddenly run very fast.
bomb bombs NOUN
A bomb is a weapon which explodes and damages a large area.
bone bones NOUN
Your bones are the hard parts inside your body which make up your skeleton.
bonfire bonfires NOUN
A bonfire is a fire lit outdoors, usually to burn garden rubbish.
bonnet bonnets
NOUN 1 A bonnet is the metal cover over a car’s engine.
NOUN 2 A bonnet is also a baby’s or woman’s hat tied under the chin.
book books, booking, booked
NOUN 1 A book is a number of pages held together inside a cover.
VERB 2 If you book something, you ask someone to keep it for you. We booked seats at the cinema.
boot boots
NOUN 1 Boots are strong shoes that cover your ankle and sometimes your calf.
NOUN 2 The boot of a car is a space for luggage.
border borders
NOUN 1 A border is the line dividing two countries.
NOUN 2 A border is a strip along the edge of something, usually as a decoration.
bore bores, boring, bored
VERB 1 If somebody bores you, you do not find them interesting.
VERB 2 If you bore a hole in something, you make a hole with a drill.
VERB 3 Bore is the past tense of bear.
bored ADJECTIVE
When you are bored, you feel tired and impatient because you have nothing interesting to do.
boredom NOUN
boring ADJECTIVE
Something boring is so dull that you have no interest in it.
born VERB
When a baby is born, it comes out of its mother’s body.
borrow borrows, borrowing, borrowed VERB
When you borrow something, someone lets you have it for a while but they expect you to give it back later.
boss bosses NOUN
Someone’s boss is the head of the place where they work.
bossy ADJECTIVE
A bossy person likes to tell others what to do.
both ADJECTIVE OR PRONOUN
You use both when you are talking about two things or people. He put both books in the drawer.
bother bothers, bothering, bothered
VERB 1 If something bothers you, it annoys you or makes you feel worried.
VERB 2 If you bother about something, you care about it and take trouble over it.
bottle bottles NOUN
A bottle is a container for keeping liquids in. Bottles are usually made of glass or plastic.
bottom bottoms
NOUN 1 The bottom of something is the lowest part of it.
NOUN 2 Your bottom is the part of your body that you sit on.
bought VERB
Bought is the past tense of buy.
boulder boulders NOUN
A boulder is a big rounded rock.
bounce bounces, bouncing, bounced VERB
When something bounces, it springs back in the opposite direction as soon as it hits something hard.
bound bounds, bounding, bounded
VERB 1 When animals or people bound, they move quickly with large leaps.
ADJECTIVE 2 If something is bound to happen, it is sure to happen.
boundary boundaries NOUN
The boundary of an area of land is its outer limit.
bow bows, bowing, bowed
(rhymes with low) NOUN 1 A bow is a kind of knot with two loops used to tie laces and ribbons.
NOUN 2 A bow is also a weapon used for shooting arrows.
NOUN 3 The bow for a stringed musical instrument is a long piece of wood with horsehair stretched along it.
(rhymes with now) VERB 4 When you bow, you bend your body forward.
bowl bowls NOUN
A bowl is an open container used for holding liquid or serving food.
box boxes NOUN
A box is a container with straight sides, made from something stiff, like cardboard, wood or plastic.
boy boys NOUN
A boy is a male child.
bracelet bracelets NOUN
A bracelet is a band or chain which is worn round the wrist or arm as an ornament.
bracket brackets NOUN
Brackets are a pair of written marks ( ) placed round words that are not part of the main text.
See Punctuation on page 270
Braille NOUN
Braille is a form of writing using raised dots that blind people can read by touching the dots with their fingers.
brain brains NOUN
Your brain is inside your head and controls your whole body. It lets you think, feel and remember.
brainy brainier, brainiest ADJECTIVE
Someone who is brainy is clever and good at learning things.
brake brakes NOUN
The