Noun

B

  • (cricket) the number of balls faced by a batsman
  • The quantity one billion (1,000,000,000), usually used to signify a sum of money $2.8 B — “two point eight billion dollars” (i.e., $2,800,000,000)
  • (Britain) The grade of pencil that makes darker marks than grade HB but lighter marks than grade 2B; a pencil with soft lead.
  • (chess) Bishop
  • (music) Bass.
  • (immunology) A B cell.

Etymology 3

(personality type): from contrast with the letter ‘A’ and its corresponding personality type (academic grade): from the position of the letter ‘B’ in the English alphabet

Noun

B (plural Bs)

  • A personality type of someone who is relaxed and easygoing and able to engage in leisure activities without worrying about work.
  • An academic grade, better than a C and worse than an A

  • Signifies a second-tier or second class of a given commodity, group, or category, as in B-movie, B-list, etc. The television studio revived some of its B characters for the spinoff.

  • Alternate or secondary part, as the back side of a phonograph record. Contrasted with A, which is the primary part.

  • (music) The seventh note in the C major scale.