. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
you have here. The definition of the word
will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Arabic
Etymology 1
From the Nabataean Aramaic letter 𐢃 ( l , “ bet ” ) , derived from the Phoenician letter 𐤁 ( l , “ bet ” ) , from the Egyptian hieroglyph 𓉐 . See also Classical Syriac ܒ ( l , “ bet ” ) , Hebrew ב ( l , “ beth ” ) , Ancient Greek β ( b ) , Latin B .
Pronunciation
Letter
ب / ب / ب / ب • (bāʔ )
The second letter of the Arabic alphabet. Its name is بَاء ( bāʔ ) and it has the sound of English b . It is preceded by أ ( ʔ ) and followed by ت ( t ) .
Symbol
ب / ب / ب / ب • (bāʔ )
The second letter in traditional abjad order, which is used in place of numerals for list numbering (abjad numerals ). It is preceded by أ ( ʔ ) and followed by ج ( j ) .
Noun
ب • (b )
Abbreviation of باب ( bāb , “ chapter ” ) .
Etymology 2
Ultimately Proto-Semitic *bV- ( “ with, in, at, among ” ) with likely interrelation with Proto-Semitic *bayt- ( “ site, location; nest, house ” ) ; cognates with Ugaritic 𐎁 ( b ) , Aramaic ב־ , Classical Syriac ܒ- , Hebrew בְּ־ ( bə- ) , Ge'ez በ ( bä ) and Egyptian bw .
Pronunciation
Preposition
بِـ • (bi- )
denotes an instrument or tool , with , by (a means)
طَرَقْتُ الْمِسْمَارَ بِ مِطْرَقَةٍ ṭaraqtu l-mismāra bi- miṭraqatin I hit the nail with a hammer
رَماهُم بِ ٱلْحِجَارَةِ ramāhum bi- l-ḥijārati He pelted them with stones.
denotes the agent of unaccusative forms
هُوَ يَتَقَوَّى بِهِ huwa yataqawwā bihi He is strengthened by it
Coordinate term: ( post-Classical ) بِوَاسِطَة ( biwāsiṭa , denotes the agent of passive forms )
denotes accompaniment
Coordinate term: مَعَ ( maʕa )
with (a component)
قَهْوةٌ بِ ٱلْحَلِيبِ ― qahwatun bi- l-ḥalībi ― coffee with milk
with (a quality); in (a state)
بِ سُرُورٍ ― bi- surūrin ― with pleasure
بِ ٱمْتِيازٍ ― bi- mtiyāzin ― with success and distinction
denotes proximity , with , to , next to , at ( touching on, connected with, concerning )
مَرْبُوطٌ بِ شَجَرَةٍ ― marbūṭun bi- šajaratin ― tied to a tree
لَا عَلاقةَ لَهُ بِ ٱلْمَوْضُوعِ ― lā ʕalāqata lahu bi- l-mawḍūʕi ― unrelated to the subject
denotes inclusion, surrounding, or location , within (a place); in ; on ; at
بِ ٱلْأَرْضِ ― bi- l-ʔarḍi ― on the earth/in or inside the ground
بِ ٱلقَرْيةِ ― bi- l-qaryati ― in the village
بِ ٱلْمَكْتَبَةِ ― bi- l-maktabati ― at the library
بِ ٱلْمَكْتَبِ ― bi- l-maktabi ― at the office/in the desk
Synonym: فِي ( fī )
denotes requital , giving or doing in return; for
اِشْتَرَيْتُهُ بِ أَلْفِ رِيَالٍ. ištaraytuhu bi- ʔalfi riyālin. I bought it for a thousand riyals.
marks the predicate of a negative copula
هُوَ لَيْسَ بِ شَاهِدٍ وَلَا بِ قَارِئٍ. huwa laysa bi- šāhidin wa-lā bi- qāriʔin. He is not one who witnessed or read .
Inflection
Inflected forms
Base form
بِـ ( bi- )
Personal-pronoun- including forms
Singular
Dual
Plural
Masculine
Feminine
Common
Masculine
Feminine
First person
بِي ( bī )
بِنَا ( binā )
Second person
بِكَ ( bika )
بِكِ ( biki )
بِكُمَا ( bikumā )
بِكُمْ ( bikum )
بِكُنَّ ( bikunna )
Third person
بِهِ ( bihi )
بِهَا ( bihā )
بِهِمَا ( bihimā )
بِهِمْ ( bihim )
بِهِنَّ ( bihinna )
Derived terms
Descendants
Balti
Pronunciation
Letter
ب (transliteration needed )
The second letter of the Balti alphabet , written in the Perso-Arabic script
Burushaski
Pronunciation
Letter
ب (transliteration needed )
The fourth letter of the Burushaski alphabet , written in the Perso-Arabic script
Central Kurdish
Letter
ب / ب / ب / ب (bā )
The third letter of the Kurdo-Arabic alphabet. Its name is با ( ba ) and it has the sound of English b . It is preceded by ا ( a ) and followed by پ ( pi ) . Equivalent to b in the Kurdo-Latin alphabet.
See also
Chinese
Pronunciation
Letter
ب
The second letter of the Xiao'erjing abjad.
Egyptian Arabic
Pronunciation 1
Etymology
From the Ottoman Turkish convention.
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Arabic abjad, به ( be ) . It is preceded by ألف ( alif ) and followed by ته ( te ) .
Pronunciation 2
Etymology 1
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Prefix
بـ • (bi- )
Used to conjugate present indicative verbs from their subjunctive forms.
Etymology 2
Inherited from Arabic بِـ ( bi- ) .
Preposition
بـ • (bi- )
Denotes an instrument or means ; with , by
ضربته ب شكوش ḍarabito bi -šakūš She hit him with a hammer
See also
پ ( be be-talat noʔaṭ )
Gujarati
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Lisan ud-Dawat abjad, equivalent to the Gujarati letter બ ( ba ) .
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: پ
Hijazi Arabic
Etymology 1
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (bāʔ )
The second letter of the Arabic alphabet. Its name is بَاء ( bāʔ ) , and is preceded by أ ( ʔalif ) and followed by ت ( tāʔ ) .
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
پ ( pāʔ )
(Arabic script letters ) ا ( ʔalif ) , ب ( bāʔ ) , ت ( tāʔ ) , ث ( ṯāʔ ) , ج ( jīm ) , ح ( ḥāʔ ) , خ ( ḵāʔ ) , د ( dāl ) , ذ ( ḏāl ) , ر ( rāʔ ) , ز ( zāy ) , س ( sīn ) , ش ( šīn ) , ص ( ṣād ) , ض ( ḍād ) , ط ( ṭāʔ ) , ظ ( ẓāʔ ) , ع ( ʕēn ) , غ ( ḡēn ) , ف ( fāʔ ) , ق ( gāf ) , ك ( kāf ) , ل ( lām ) , م ( mīm ) , ن ( nūn ) , هـ ( hāʔ ) , و ( wāw ) , ي ( yāʔ )
Etymology 2
Probably from a shortened form of Arabic بَغْيْ ( baḡy , “ to want ” ) .
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /bi/
Preposition
بِـ • (bi )
-ing ( prefix indicating the present continuous tense )
بِيِتْكَلَّم bi yitkallamhe is speaking
Etymology 3
From Arabic بِ ( bi ) .
Pronunciation
Preposition
بِـ • (bi )
with , by (a means)
بِالْمِطْرَقة bi-l-miṭraga with a mallet
Kashmiri
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (b )
The second letter of the traditional alphabet chart of Kashmiri .
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: پ ( p )
Kazakh
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (b )
The second letter of the Kazakh in Arabic Script. It represents the Cyrillic letter Б .
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: پ
(Arabic script letters ) ا , ب , پ , ت , ج , چ , ح , د , ر , ز , س , ش , ع , ف , ق , ك , گ , ڭ , ل , م , ن , ە , ھ , و , ۇ , ۋ , ۆ , ى , ي .
Khowar
Pronunciation
Letter
ب (be )
The second letter of the Khowar abjad.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: أ
Next letter: پ
Kyrgyz
Pronunciation
( letter name ) : IPA (key ) : /be/
( phoneme ) : IPA (key ) : /b/ , /w/ , /v/
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Kyrgyz in Arabic Script. It represents the Cyrillic letter Б
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
(Arabic script letters ) ا , ب , پ , ﻥ , ﺕ , ﺝ , ﭺ , ﺡ , ﻑ , ﻕ , ﻉ , ك , گ , ڭ , ﻝ , ﻡ , و , ۅ , ۉ , ﯗ , ﯞ , ﺱ , ﺵ , ﺩ , ﺭ , ﺯ , ﻩ , ﻯ , ﯗﺀ , ﻰﺋ , ﻲ , ﻯ , ء , يۋ , ﻻ ,
Malay
Pronunciation
( Name of letter ) IPA (key ) :
( Phoneme, Syllable initial ) IPA (key ) :
( Phoneme, Syllable final ) IPA (key ) :
Letter
ب / ب / ب / ب
The second letter of the Malay alphabet , written in the Arabic script .
See also
(Arabic script letters ) ا , ب , ت , ة , ث , ج , چ , ح , خ , د , ذ , ر , ز , س , ش , ص , ض , ط , ظ , ع , غ , ڠ , ف , ڤ , ق , ک , ݢ , ل , م , ن , و , ۏ , ه , ء , ي , ى , ڽ
Northern Kurdish
Preposition
ب (bi )
Arabic spelling of bi ( “ by ” )
Ottoman Turkish
Etymology
From Arabic and Persian.
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. Its name is با ( ba, be ) .
Preposition
ب • (be or bi )
with
بخرد ― intelligent (literally, “with intelligence ”)
at ; in
to ; into
for ; because of
References
Pahari-Potwari
Pronunciation
Letter
ب (be )
The second letter of Pahari-Pothwari in the Shahmukhi script.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا ( alif )
Next letter: پ ( pe )
Pashto
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Pashto alphabet .
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: پ
Persian
Pronunciation
( phoneme, all dialects ) IPA (key ) : /b/
( letter name )
Letter
ب / ب / ب / ب • (be )
The second letter of the Perso-Arabic alphabet . It is preceded by ا and followed by پ . Its name is به ( be ) or بِ ( be ) .
Punjabi
Etymology
From Classical Persian ب ( be ) , from Arabic ب ( bāʔ ) .
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of Punjabi in the Shahmukhi script.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا ( alif )
Next letter: پ ( pe )
(Shahmukhi script letters ) ا , ب ( b ) , پ ( p ) , ت ( t ) , ٹ ( ṭ ) , ث ( s̱ ) , ج ( j ) , چ ( c ) , ح ( ḥ ) , خ ( x ) , د ( d ) , ڈ ( ḍ ) , ذ ( ẕ ) , ر ( r ) , ڑ ( ṛ ) , ز ( z ) , ژ ( ž ) , س ( s ) , ش ( ś ) , ص ( ṣ ) , ض ( ẓ ) , ط ( t̤ ) , ظ ( z̤ ) , ع ( ʻ ) , غ ( ġ ) , ف ( f ) , ق ( q ) , ک ( k ) , گ ( g ) , ل ( l ) , ࣇ ( ḷ ) , م ( m ) , ن ( n ) , ݨ ( ṇ ) , ں ( ṉ ) , ہ ( h ) , و ( v ) , ی ( y ) , ے ( e ) (Category: Punjabi letters )
Sindhi
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Sindhi abjad.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
(Letters of the Sindhi alphabet ) ا , ب , ٻ , ڀ , ت , ٿ , ٽ , ٺ , ث , پ , ج , ڄ , جھ , ڃ , چ , ڇ , ح , خ , د , ڌ , ڏ , ڊ , ڍ , ذ , ر , ڙ , ڙھ , ز , س , ش , ص , ض , ط , ظ , ع , غ , ف , ڦ , ق , ڪ , ک , گ , ڳ , گھ , ڱ , ل , م , ن , ڻ , و , ه , ء , ي
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: ٻ
South Levantine Arabic
Etymology
From Arabic بِ ( bi ) .
Pronunciation
Preposition
بـ • (bi- )
in , at , on
Synonym: في ( fi )
with , by means of
Synonym: في ( fi )
Particle
بـ • (b- )
prefix indicating the present tense
Tunisian Arabic
Etymology
From Arabic بِ ( bi ) .
Preposition
ب (b )
with
نحب قهوة بالحليب ― nḥib qahwa b-li-ḥlīb ― I like coffee with milk
ترعش بالخوف ― turʕuš bi-l-ḵūf ― She is shaking with fear
Inflection
inflected forms of ب
Base form
ب ( b )
Personal-pronoun- including forms
singular
plural
m
f
1st person
بي ( biyya )
بينا ( bīna )
2nd person
بيك ( bīk )
بيكم ( bīkum )
3rd person
بيه ( bīh )
بيها ( bīha )
بيهم ( bīhum )
Urdu
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (be )
The second letter of the Urdu abjad.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: پ ( p )
Uyghur
Pronunciation
Letter
ب • (be )
The third letter of the Uyghur alphabet.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ئە ( e )
Next letter: پ ( p )
Yoruba
Pronunciation
Letter
ب (b )
The second letter of the Yorùbá alphabet in the Ajami Script.
Isolated form
Final form
Medial form
Initial form
ب
ـب
ـبـ
بـ
See also
Previous letter: ا
Next letter: د