I’m just not buying “a bellowing cream shirt”. It’s simply too loud for me. I’d much rather have a billowing shirt, as worn by the three musketeers or pirates!
So pay attention to your word choice between bellow and billow lest you find an editor bellowing at those mistakes in a billow of frustration!
Word Confusions…
…started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noir for you from either end.
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| Bellow | Billow |
|---|---|
| Credit to: Apple Dictionary.com; Dictionary.com: bellow, billow; Lexico.com: billow | |
Angry Woman is in the public domain, via MaxPixel.net. — A bellow of anger roared from her. |
Billow by ankakay is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun and third person present verb: bellows |
Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun and third person present verb: billows |
| Noun: A deep roaring shout or sound, as of pain or anger The characteristic noise of a bull Verb, intransitive:
Verb, transitive: Sing (a song) loudly and tunelessly |
Noun: A large undulating mass of something, typically cloud, smoke, or steam
[Physical geography] A large atmospheric wave, usually in the lee of a hill [Plural; poetic] The sea itself Verb, intransitive:
Surge Verb, transitive: |
| Examples: | |
| Noun: He let loose a bellow of rage. He delivers his lines in a bellow. A scant few feet in front of the boys, the attacker turned with a bellow of rage. I suddenly open my mouth and let forth a tremendous bellow of laughter. The bellow echoed through the whole house, I was sure. Verb, intransitive: The bull bellowed. He bellowed out the order. “God send the right!” he bellowed. His desperate parents were bellowing at her to stop. He was bellowing in rage. Verb, transitive: He got thrown out of bars for bellowing Portuguese folk songs. He bellowed his command across the room. As he stammers, then bellows the last chorus of “(Do Not Feed The) Oyster”, the kingdom rejoices: Their prince is free. |
Noun: But when the smoke billows, politicians have to answer to a panicked public, and they often seize the opportunity to push a different agenda. I’ve never seen such huge billows of smoke before. Allow the billows of thick blue smoke to permeate your atmosphere and breathe it in. Verb, intransitive: Smoke was billowing from the chimney. The flags were billowing in the breeze. She was sure, though, running at break neck speed, fabric billowing behind her, that something on the outside was now trying to break through. Pierce had not shifted his gaze from the Spanish ensign, but she suspected that he no longer saw the red and yellow fabric billowing in the breeze. In a single motion, she had pulled the gown from her shoulders, sending the light fabric billowing onto the floor. Verb, transitive: There was a field of burning grass billowing thick black clouds of smoke into the sky. It was a freshening wind that billowed the sails. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Noun: bellower, bellowing, bellows Verb, transitive: outbellow |
Adjective: billowing, billowy Noun: billowiness |
| History of the Word: | |
| Middle English perhaps from the late Old English bylgan. | Mid-16th century, from the Old Norse bylgja. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan…which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them…and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions by exploring the index. You may also want to explore Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, and/or the Properly Punctuated.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Red Deer Stag During Rut by Bill Ebbesen had part of its background cloned and was then feather cropped. It is under the CC BY 3.0 license. Cropped, the background was removed and Khaki Shorts Blouse by Steven Hale was flipped horizontally and is under the CC BY 2.0 license. Both images are via Flickr.
