Tuesday, June 12, 2012

ball, bawl

Ball or ball means the spherical or globe-shaped object used in sports and games--
The game ended when the ball landed on the roof.
"Take me out to the ball game..."

Ball is also an old-fashioned term for a formal dance--
"... all of the ladies attending the ball..."
"After the ball is over, after the break of day..."

Bawl or bawl ( rhymes with ball ) means to make loud crying or sobbing noises--
Don't tease the baby; he'll start to bawl.
I wish the baby wouldn't bawl like that whenever he gets upset about something.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The baby started to bawl when he lost his ball."

Note--not to be confused with "brawl", meaning a fistfight involving two or more people--
The police were summoned to break up the brawl.

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