Bard

1. A lyrical poet
2. Armour for horses

E.g: Kuvempu is regarded as the greatest bard Karnataka has ever seen.

Barefaced

1. Open and undisguised, without shame

E.g: The Barefaced manner in which Lalit Modi lobbied for the Ahemedabad IPL team was shocking.

Baroque

1. Having enormous symmetric ornamentation

E.g: The Taj Mahal can be considered as a typical example of Baroque Mughal architecture

Barrage

1. Heavy fire of artillery to saturate an area rather than fire at a specific target
2. Address continuously and persistently

E.g: Unable to handle the barrage of questions fired at him in the parliment, Shashi Tharoor decided to quit, with immediate effect.

Barrister

1. Lawyer

E.g:After years of hard work and toil, Mr. Sibal was able to establish himself as the leading barrister in the country.

Barterer

Bask

Take pleasure or enjoy. Expose to warmth

E.g: The Crocodiles bask on the sandy beaches of Australia

Bastion

1. a stronghold into which people could go for shelter during a battle
2. A group that defends a principle

E.g: Kartavya is a bastion against corruption.

Bate

1. Lessen in intensity

E.g: After loosing 5 matches on the trot, no one could lift our bated enthusiasm

Bauble

1. Small, cheap ornament or piece of jewelery

E.g: We were ready to vent our anger on the TV Show producers for giving us a bauble for winning the competition.

Bawdy

Cheap and tawdry

E.g: We got arrested once, for singing bawdy songs in a cemetery.

Beatific

Blissful. Showing happiness and calmness

E.g: The beatific smile of The Dalia Lama greeted everyone at the monastery

Beatify

declare (a dead person) to be blessed; the first step of achieving sainthood

E.g: On Sunday, the martyr will be beatified by the Vatican

Beatitude

A state of supreme happiness

E.g: The AOL course promises to take you to a beatitude state after a week long program.

Bedraggle

make wet and dirty, as from rain

E.g: The begaar's bedraggled clothes forced the children to run away from him.

Beeline

A quick, direct route.

E.g: He made a beeline for the bathroom

Befuddle

1. To confuse
2. Make stupid with alcohol

E.g: Even the greatest of scientists were befuddled after hearing the session on "Invisible Metal".

Beget

To father, produce, give rise to

E.g: King Henry III wanted to beget a heir.

Begrudge

1. Wish ill, allow unwilling, i.e., resent
2. Be envious of

E.g: I do not begrudge the money I have lost

Beguile

Mislead or delude, cheat

E.g: He used his newspapers to beguile the readers into buying shares in his company

Behemoth

Someone or something that is large and powerful

E.g: Pradeep released his behemoth 1,047 page book on the IPL Auction fiasco.

Beholden

Under a moral obligation to someone

E.g: The franchisee owners felt beholden to Lalit Modi and felt its their duty to support him during the IPL Gate crisis.

Behoove

1. to be necessary or proper for, as for moral or ethical considerations
2. to be worthwhile to, as for personal profit or advantage

E.g:

1. It behooves the court to weigh evidence impartially
2. It would behoove you to be nicer to those who could help you

Belabour

1. Beat vigorously
2. Attack verbally with harsh criticism

E.g: I won't belabour the point, for this is a familiar story.

Belated

After the expected or usual time; delayed

E.g: The leaders realized belatedly that the coup would be disastrous for everyone

Beleaguer

1. To annoy persistently
2. Surround as to force to give up; besiege

E.g: The babysitter was surrounded by a crowd of unmanageable brats who relentlessly beleaguered her.

Belie

Misrepresent, Contradict

E.g: Mom's actions belied her feelings.

Belittle

1. Lessen the authority, dignity or reputation of;
2. Play down something
3. Express a negative opinion of;

E.g: The teacher belittled her student's achievements

Bellicose

Aggressive actions or behaviour that are likely to start an argument or a fight.

E.g: He expressed alarm about the government's increasingly bellicose statements.

Belligerent

Aggressive and ready to fight

E.g: The belligerent statements from both sides of the border after 26/11 had led to fears of war.

Bemoan

Regret strongly, express displeasure,unhappiness

E.g: Private Colleges often bemoan lack of funds.

Bemused

Confused, lost in thought, preoccupied

E.g: Rajeev was definitely bemused by the questions put forth in the interview

Benediction

A ceremonial prayer invoking divine protection

E.g: She could only raise her hand in a gesture of benediction.

Benefactor

Person who helps a person or organization by giving them money.

E.g:In his old age he became a benefactor of the arts.

Beneficent

Doing or producing some good

E.g: Dr.Kalam was optimistic about the beneficent effects of the new technology

Beneficial

Promoting or enhancing well being

E.g: UNO decided it would be beneficial to have an Arms Limitation Agreement among all its member nations.

Beneficiary

Recipient of funds or other benefits

E.g: The beneficiaries of a will are legally entitled to receive money or property from someone when that person dies

Benevolent

Kind, mild-mannered and generous

E.g: Channa has been a benevolent contributor towards MSS activities

Benign

kind, gentle, and harmless

E.g: The benign climate of Ooty gave us the much needed break from the scorching heat.

Benison

A spoken blessing

E.g: Lets all hope that our parent's benison shall protect us in this meeting.

Bent

1. Determined
2. Natural talent to do something

E.g: His bent for natural history directed him towards his first job.

Bequeath

Leave or give by will after one's death

E.g:

1. He bequeaths his successor an economy that is doing quite well
2. He bequeathed all his silver to his children.

Berate

Censure severely or angrily

E.g: Hayden deserved the berating the coach gave him.

Bereavement

A state of sorrow due to the departure or death of loved one.

E.g: When Mary died Anne did not share her brother's sense of bereavement.

Bereft

Deprieved of, lacking

E.g: The place seemed to be utterly bereft of human life

Berserk

crazy and out of control.

E.g: He tossed back his head in a howl of berserk laughter.

Beseech

Ask for or request earnestly

E.g: She beseeched him to cut his drinking and his smoking.

Beset

1. Assail or attack on all sides
2. Decorate or cover lavishly (as with gems)

E.g:

The country is beset by severe economic problems.

The King's throne is beset with precious gems and diamonds.

Besiege

1. Surround so as to force to give up
2. Cause to feel distressed or worried

E.g: She was besieged by the press and the public.

Besmirch

Charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone.

E.g: He has accused local people of trying to besmirch his reputation.

Bestial

1. Something that is very unpleasant or disgusting.
2. Inhumane manner

E.g: A statement onIndian Radio spoke of bestial aggression and a horrible massacre

Bestow

Give or present something

E.g: The Queen has bestowed a knighthood on him.

Betoken

1. Be a signal for, or a symptom of.
2. Signify

E.g: The president alone betokened the national identity.

Betray

Be Unfaithful

E.g:The president alone betokened the national identity

Betroth

The act of becoming engaged

E.g: The announcement that they had become bethrothed surprised their friends as none of them suspected any romance between them.

Bevy

A large gathering of a particular type.

E.g: Both teams squandered a bevy of opportunities

Bicameral

Consisting of two chambers

E.g: The bicameral heart of a fish fascinate Jim.

Bicker

argue or quarrel about unimportant things

E.g: Political bickering always tends to reach its prime just before elections.

Biennial

Something that occurs every two years.

E.g: The Commonwealth conference is a biennial event

Bifurcated

Divided or made into two parts

E.g: The Bifurcation between Art cinema and Commercial cinema is reducing in India.

Bigotry

the intolerance and prejudice of a bigot.(A bigot is a person who is intolerant of or takes offense to the opinions, lifestyles or identities differing from his or her own)

E.g: He deplored religious bigotry.

Bilious

1. something that looks unpleasant and rather disgusting
2. used to describe the feelings or behaviour of someone who is extremely angry or bad-tempered.
3. suffering from or suggesting a liver disorder

E.g:His speech was a bilious, rancorous attack on young people.

Bilk

cheat somebody out of what is due, especially money

E.g: He bilked his investors for two years before being caught by the police.

Billowing

1. characterized by great swelling waves or surges;
2. something that swells out and moves slowly

E.g :The curtains billowed in the breeze

Bivouac

temporary camp made by soldiers or mountain climbers

E.g: We bivouacked on the outskirts of the city.

Bizarre

very odd and strange.

E.g: The game was also notable for the bizarre behaviour of the team's manager.

Blanch

1. become very pale
2. find something unpleasant and do not want to be involved with it

E.g:

1. His face blanched as he looked at her blood-drenched uniform.
2. There are places you can take physically handicapped children where staff don't blanch at the sight of a wheelchair.

Bland

1. dull and unexciting
2. Something that has very little flavour

E.g: We had been to that bland little drama.

Blandish

Cajole; Praise somewhat dishonestly

E.g: Despite all the sweet talking, we were unable to blandish the guard into letting us into the bar.

Blandishment

flattery intended to persuade.

E.g: Despite the salesman's blandishment, the customer refused to buy the product.

Blare

To make a loud, unpleasant noise.

E.g: The horns of the taxi blared.

Blase

uninterested because of frequent exposure or indulgence

E.g: The blase traveller refers to the ocean he has crossed as "the pond".

Blasphemy

Irreverent behavior toward anything held sacred, priceless.(Showing disrespect)

E.g: He was found guilty of blasphemy and sentenced to three years in jail

Blatant

something bad that is done in an open or very obvious way

E.g:They said the song blatantly encouraged the killing of policemen

Bleak

1. Offering little or no hope
2. Something that looks looks cold, empty, and unattractive.

E.g:The continued bleakness of the American job market is worrying.

Blighted

Anything that damages or prevents growth and prosperity

E.g: Ashish Nehera has had a career blighted with injuries.

Blithe

1. Carefree and light hearted
2. Showing lack of due concern

E.g: Priety was loved for her blithe spirit.

Bloated

1. Swollen, puffed up
2. Excessively vain

E.g: His bloated stomach is due to excessive eating.

Blowhard

A talkative and boastful person

E.g: Robin is not a blowhard like frank.

Bludgeon

A club used as a heavy weapon

E.g: The teached bludgeoned the students into learning maths formulas.

Bluff

1. Bluntly direct and outspoken, but good natured
2. Pretense of strength; decieve
3. something very steep

E.g:

1. He is a bluff and rugged natural leader
2. It is difficult to get our vehicle on this bluff headland