Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson [12]
Bashkortostan. Russian republic.
BASIC. Short for Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code; computer programming language.
basically. The trouble with this word, basically, is that it is almost always unnecessary.
Basilicata. Region of Italy.
basis. More often than not, a reliable indicator of wordiness, as here: “Det. Chief Supt. Peter Topping…said he would review the search on a day-to-day basis.” Why not make it “would review the search daily” and save five words?
Basotho. The people of Lesotho.
bas-relief.
Basse-Normandie. Region of France; capital Caen.
Basseterre. Capital of St. Kitts and Nevis.
basset hound.
Bastille Day. July 14 (1789).
Bataan. Peninsula of the Philippines, famous for a long forced march of defeated Allied soldiers by Japanese in which many thousands died in World War II.
bated breath, not baited. Bated is a cousin of abated and so implies something that is withheld.
bathos. From the Greek bathus, meaning “deep,” bathos can be used to indicate the lowest point or nadir, or triteness and insincerity. But its usual use is in describing an abrupt descent from an elevated position to the commonplace. It is not the opposite of pathos, which has to do with feelings of pity or sympathy.
Bathsheba. In the Old Testament, the wife of Uriah and then David, and mother of Solomon.
bathyscaph. Research submarine.
battalion.
Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio.
Baudelaire, Charles (Pierre). (1821-1867) French poet.
Baudouin I, (Albert Charles Léopold Axel Marie Gustave). (1930-1993) King of the Belgians (1951-1993).
Bauhaus. German school of arts and architecture, founded by Walter Gropius (1883-1969).
Baum, L(yman) Frank. (1856-1919) American writer of children’s stories; created The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Bausch & Lomb. Eye-care company.
Bayern. German for Bavaria.
Bayonne. Name of cities in France and New Jersey.
Bayreuth, Bavaria.
BC always goes after the year (e.g., 42 BC); usually set in small caps. See also AD.
BCE. Before the Christian era.
be (with a participle). Almost always a wordy way of getting your point across, as here: “He will be joining the board of directors in March.” Quicker to say, “He will join the board of directors in March.”
Beachy Head, East Sussex, England.
Beardsley, Aubrey. (1872-1898) British artist.
béarnaise sauce.
Beaufort, South Carolina; pronounced bew-furt.
Beaufort scale. Measures wind velocity on a scale of 0 to 12, with 0 representing dead calm and 12 representing a hurricane.
Beaujolais. French region and wine.
Beaumarchais, Pierre Augustin Caron de. (1732-1799) French playwright whose works inspired The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro.
beau monde. (Fr.) The fashionable world; pl. beaux mondes.
Beauregard, Pierre (Gustave Toutant de). (1818-1893) Confederate general in the Civil War.
Beauvoir, Simone (Lucie Ernestine Marie Bertrand) de. (1908-1986) French author.
beaux arts. (Fr.) The fine arts.
béchamel sauce.
Becher’s Brook. Celebrated jump on English Grand National horse racing course.
Bechuanaland. Former name of Botswana.
Becket, St. Thomas (à). (1118-1170) Archbishop of Canterbury, murdered by followers of Henry II.
Beckett, Samuel. (1906-1989) Irish poet, playwright, and novelist.
becquerel. Unit of radioactivity, named after Antoine Henri Becquerel (1852-1908), French physicist.
Bedloe’s Island. Former name of Liberty Island, New York; site of the Statue of Liberty.
bedouin is plural; the singular is bedi. Bedu is an alternative plural.
Beecher, Henry Ward. (1813-1887) American preacher.
Beelzebub. Satan.
Beene, Geoffrey. (1927-2004) American fashion designer.
Beerbohm, Sir (Henry) Max(imilian). (1872-1956) British writer and critic.
Beethoven, Ludwig van. (1770-1827) German composer.
before, prior to. There is no difference between these two except length and a certain inescapable affectedness on the part of prior to. To paraphrase Theodore Bernstein, if you would use “posterior to” instead of “after,” then by all means use “prior to” instead of “before.”
Beggar’s Opera, The.