Word Confusion: Bald vs Balled vs Bawled

Plural for the noun: balds

Third person present verb: balds
Past tense or past participle: balded
Present participle: balding

Plural for the noun: balls
Gerund: balling

Third person present verb: balls
Past tense or past participle: balled
Present participle: balling

Plural for the noun: bawls
Gerund: bawling

Third person present verb: bawls
Past tense or past participle: bawled
Present participle: bawling

• [Zoology] Not covered by the usual fur, hair, or feathers
• [Of a plant or an area of land] Not covered by the usual leaves, bark, or vegetation
• [Of a tire] Having the tread worn away

[Attrib.] Not having any extra detail or explanation

• Plain or blunt
• Bare
• Unadorned

Open

Undisguised

[Zoology] Having white on the head

• Marked with white

Noun:
[Chiefly South Midland and Southern US; often uses an initial capital letter] A treeless mountaintop or area near the top

• Often used as part of a proper name

Verb, intransitive:
To become bald

Verb, transitive:
To make bald

• A ball-shaped object
• [Historical] A solid nonexplosive missile for a firearm
• [North American] A game played with a ball, especially baseball

[In baseball] A pitch delivered outside the strike zone that the batter does not attempt to hit

• [In soccer] A pass of the ball in a specified direction or manner

A round mass of food, as of chopped meat, dough, or candy

[In full the ball of the foot] The rounded protuberant part of the foot at the base of the big toe

• [In full the ball of the thumb] The rounded protuberant part of the hand at the base of the thumb

A social function for dancing, especially one that is lavish or formal ²

[Informal] A very enjoyable time (especially in the phrase have a ball)

A testicle ³

• Nut

Verb, intransitive:
[Usually ball up] Squeeze or form something into a rounded shape ¹

• Form a round shape

[North American vulgar slang] To have sexual intercourse

Verb, transitive:
[Usually ball up] Squeeze or form something into a rounded shape ¹

• Clench or screw up (one’s fist) tightly
• Wrap the rootball of a tree or shrub in burlap to protect it during transportation

[North American vulgar slang] Have sexual intercourse with

[Sometimes followed by up] To make into a ball

To wind into balls

A period or spell of loud crying or weeping

[Chiefly Midland and Western US] The noise made by a calf

Verb, intransitive:
Weep or cry noisily

• Wail

Verb, reporting:
Shout or call out noisily and unrestrainedly

Verb, transitive:
Shout or call out noisily and unrestrainedly

To utter or proclaim by outcry

He was starting to go bald.

Hedgehogs are born bald.

It was odd to see all those bald trunks with their empty branches.

Dang, my car has two bald tires.

The bald statement in the preceding paragraph requires amplification.

“The Spy Who Came In From the Cold . . . remains the crucial introduction to le Carré’s cool moral universe — his bald, adjective-free prose style . . .” (Garner).

That’s a bald lie!

The Kentresses just bought a bald-faced mare.

Omigod! Paul was bald as a coot!

He certainly had a bald arrogance!

I love that rug! I don’t care if it is going bald!

Noun:
They’re heading for Bald Mountain.

The Bald Mountains are a mountain range rising along the border between Tennessee and North Carolina in the southeastern United States.

There is some rock climbing involved on Bald Mountain in New Hampshire.

Verb, intransitive:
Your uncle is balding with age.

He is balding already?

He was balding by the time he was twenty-five.

Verb, transitive:
You’re balding that dog with all the brushing.

Ellen sighed, as she realized that her ball of wool was almost gone.

He crushed the card into a ball.

He sat, carefully pouring lead into a mold to make balls.

“C’mon, Nancy. Kids have been playing ball in that lot for almost a hundred years.”

Roll the dough into a ball and set it on the cookie sheet.

The umpire called it a ball.

Whelan sent a long ball to Goddard.

When tiptoeing, one’s weight is on the ball of the foot.

The life line starts between the thumb and the forefinger and encircles the ball of the thumb towards the wrist.

The Vanderbilts are giving a ball.

We had a ball at the Vanderbilts’ ball.

Oh, god. That bitch kicked me in the balls.

Verb, intransitive:
The fishing nets eventually ball up and sink.

When the spun sugar balls, the candy has cooked sufficiently.

Verb, transitive:
Robert balled up his napkin and threw it onto his plate.

She balled her fist so that the nails dug into her palms.

Steve is out back, balling up the maples for that order.

“Didja hear? Freddie’s been balling Veronica.”

The children were balling up snow to make a snowman.

Come and help me ball this cotton.

It was a strong healthy calf, and too bad for everyone that his bawls carried so well in the night air.

Verb, intransitive:
She began to bawl like a child.

Joe bawled with laughter.

Verb, reporting:
“Move!” bawled the drill sergeant.

Verb, transitive:
Ol’ George was lustily bawling out the hymns.

Jim had to listen to Mary bawl out her disappointment.

Henry was so drunk at the last family dinner, bawling his senseless ditties to everyone at the table.

There was a peddler bawling his wares outside my window.

1. Middle English from the Old Norse bǫllr is of Germanic origin.
2. From the French noun bal and from the Old French verb baller, both of which are from the Late Latin ballāre meaning to dance, which is from the Greek ballizein.
3. 1300s+.