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  • bc
    bc
    abbreviation
    basso continuo.
  • BC
    BC
    abbreviation
    buoyancy compensator.
  • B/C
    B/C
    bills for collection.
  • b.c.
    b.c.
    abbreviation
    before Christ (used in indicating dates).
  • B.C.
    B.C.
    abbreviation
    Bachelor of Chemistry.

bc

1 American  

abbreviation

  1. Music. basso continuo.

  2. blind copy: used as a notation on the copy of a letter or other document sent to a third person without the addressee's knowledge. Also


BC 2 American  

abbreviation

  1. Scuba Diving. buoyancy compensator.

  2. British Columbia, Canada (approved for postal use).


B/C 3 American  
  1. bills for collection.


b.c. 4 American  
Or B.C.

abbreviation

  1. before Christ (used in indicating dates).


B.C. 5 American  

abbreviation

  1. Bachelor of Chemistry.

  2. Bachelor of Commerce.

  3. bass clarinet.

  4. battery commander.

  5. British Columbia.


BC British  

abbreviation

  1. Also: B.C..  (indicating years numbered back from the supposed year of the birth of Christ) before Christ Compare AD

    in 54 bc Caesar came

  2. British Columbia

"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

Usage

The abbreviation b.c. “before Christ” is always placed after a date or century: Cleopatra lived from 69 to 30 b.c. The war took place in the first century b.c. See also a.d. 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

“We *want* remain pass less and will continue to wear our man repellent vision helpers, mostly so we can function, but also bc of the bonus Creeper Deterrents. #jeopardy #foureyes,” another wrote.

From Los Angeles Times Oct. 30, 2024

Ohh my fault, it was holding bc he threw the flag.”

From Seattle Times Oct. 2, 2023

“There needs to be an age limit on congressional positions bc this was so embarrassing,” one user wrote in the caption of a video posted on Friday.

From New York Times Mar. 28, 2023

Allen said: When LT blocked him, not Sweat, he knew to stay outside bc Sweat would go inside.

From Washington Post Nov. 22, 2022

A particularly ancient find was a flute made of bear bone, discovered in a Slovenian cave in 1995, which was dated at roughly 41,000 bc.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

The findings, published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, show that the burial site was used during two separate periods, divided by a major population decline around 3000 BC.

From Science Daily Jul. 8, 2026

The only 2026 World Cup venue not affected by the rule is Vancouver's BC Place.

From Barron's Jun. 12, 2026

The earliest evidence of people on Ynys Enlli are pieces of flint, which have been dated back to between 2,000 and 1,000 BC.

From BBC May 21, 2026

Additionally, they may have no place to play next season since their lease at BC Place, a 54,000-seat football stadium, expires at the end of the year.

From Los Angeles Times May 8, 2026

The Hippocratic Oath, written in the fourth century BC, didn’t require patient consent.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

So, diagram the A/B premise and the B/C premise onto the three circles.

From Salon Jul. 29, 2024

“Out of an abundance of caution, TSA evacuated the B/C and D/E security checkpoints to ensure the safety of its employees and travelers,” a TSA spokesperson said in an email.

From Seattle Times Nov. 15, 2023

He’s a smart kid and normally a strong B/C student.

From Slate Feb. 11, 2021

As the BBC revealed on Wednesday, the inspectorate's findings on HMP Liverpool - a local category B/C prison, which also takes people on remand - are damning across the board.

From BBC Dec. 19, 2017

Taagepera, R. Size and duration of empires growth-decline curves, 3000 to 600 b.c.

From Nature Nov. 14, 2017

French archaeologists, for example, have found exquisite ceramic figurines, bowls and funerary objects at sites that date from at least 8000 b.c.

From Time Magazine Archive

Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 b.c.

From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling

In 1650 James Ussher, archbishop of Armagh, calculated from Old Testament genealogical data that God created the universe on Sunday, October 23, 4004 b.c.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Even allowing for a slow passage, the Israelites must have arrived by around 500 b.c.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

We have six homes: In California, we own two contemporary houses in Malibu, one house in Beverly Hills and two in Hollywood; and there’s one in Whistler, B.C.

From The Wall Street Journal Jun. 23, 2026

Khichdi, derived from the Sanskrit word khicca, meaning a dish made with rice and legumes, dates back to the ninth century B.C.

From Salon Jun. 7, 2026

In the retelling of the ancient historian’s chronicle of the fifth century B.C.

From The Wall Street Journal May 18, 2026

The one that really moved me was an ancient Chinese calligraphy example that’s from 1000 B.C.

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 21, 2026

As early as 5000 B.C., colossal architecture of massive, upright stones appeared.

From "The Annotated Mona Lisa" by Carol Strickland and John Boswell

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