Babel

1
[ bab-uhl; Russian bah-byil ]
See synonyms for Babel on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. I·saak Em·ma·nu·i·lo·vich [ahy-zuhk; Russian ee-sahkyi-muh-noo-yee-luh-vyich], /ˈaɪ zək; Russian iˈsɑk yɪ mə nuˈyi lə vyɪtʃ/, 1894–1941, Russian author.

Words Nearby Babel

Other definitions for Babel (2 of 2)

Babel2
[ bey-buhl, bab-uhl ]

noun
  1. an ancient city in the land of Shinar in which the building of a tower (Tower of Babel ) intended to reach heaven was begun and the confusion of the language of the people took place. Genesis 11:4–9.

  2. (usually lowercase) a confused mixture of sounds or voices.

  1. (usually lowercase) a scene of noise and confusion.

Origin of Babel

2
First recorded in 1300–50; from Latin, from Hebrew Bābhel “Babylon,” from Akkadian bāb-ilim “the gate of the god”

Other words for Babel

Other words from Babel

  • Ba·bel·ic [bey-bel-ik, ba-], /beɪˈbɛl ɪk, bæ-/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Babel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Babel (1 of 2)

Babel1

/ (ˈbeɪbəl) /


noun
  1. Old Testament

    • Also called: Tower of Babel a tower presumptuously intended to reach from earth to heaven, the building of which was frustrated when Jehovah confused the language of the builders (Genesis 11:1–9)

    • the city, probably Babylon, in which this tower was supposedly built

  2. (often not capital)

    • a confusion of noises or voices

    • a scene of noise and confusion

Origin of Babel

1
from Hebrew Bābhél, from Akkadian Bāb-ilu, literally: gate of God

British Dictionary definitions for Babel (2 of 2)

Babel2

/ (Russian ˈbabɪl) /


noun
  1. Issak Emmanuilovich (iˈsak imənuˈiləvitʃ) 1894–1941, Russian short-story writer, whose works include Stories from Odessa (1924) and Red Cavalry (1926)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012