Babel

[ bab-uhl; Russian bah-byil ]

/ ˈbæb əl; Russian ˈbɑ byɪl /

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noun

I·saak Em·ma·nu·i·lo·vich

[ahy-zuhk; Russian ee-sahk yi-muh-noo-yee-luh-vyich], /ˈaɪ zək; Russian iˈsɑk yɪ mə nuˈyi lə vyɪtʃ/, 1894–1941, Russian author.

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Words nearby Babel

babe, Bab ed-Din, babe-in-a-cradle, babe in arms, babe in the woods, Babel, Babelism, Babelize, Babelized, Bab el Mandeb, Babel, Tower of

Other definitions for Babel (2 of 2)

Babel²

[ bey-buhl, bab-uhl ]

/ ˈbeɪ bəl, ˈbæb əl /

noun

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.

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

(usually lowercase) a scene of noise and confusion.

OTHER WORDS FOR Babel

3 tumult, turmoil, uproar, bedlam, clamor.

See synonyms for Babel on Thesaurus.com

Origin of Babel

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

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. 2022

How to use Babel in a sentence

The Future of TV Briefing this week aims to offer a Tower of Babel for some of the industry’s most prevalent acronyms.
Future of TV Briefing: What we talk about when we talk about TV|Tim Peterson|August 25, 2021|Digiday
Gowan, Donald E. From Eden to Babel: A Commentary on the Book of Genesis 1-11.
The Backstory of ‘Noah’ Is Full of Giants, Horny Angels, and a Grieving God|Tim Townsend|March 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Mumford Sons taking 'a considerable amount of time off' after 'Babel' tour.
Emmy Awards Score Ratings High, Jon Hamm May Undergo Surgery|Culture Team|September 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST
We watch Babel beaten, just before his death, in “Lubyanka Prison, Moscow, 1940.”
Intriguing, Humorous, Even Poetic: Peter Orner’s New Story Collection|Joseph Peschel|August 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Guillermo Arriaga (Babel, 21 Grams, The Burning Plain) employs a nonlinear style.
Benjamin Percy: How I Write|Noah Charney|June 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
After two mostly ignored novels, Shababo spent the rest of her life working in what Isaac Babel called the "genre of silence."
For My Money, I'll Take the Al-Kuwaitis|Gershom Gorenberg|May 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
If there is one thing that convinces me that the story of the Tower of Babel is true, it is the names of the towns in Injy.
The Soldier of the Valley|Nelson Lloyd
They spoke so many different languages that a Babel-like confusion resulted.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller
Again Babel burst forth, and riot reigned supreme for five minutes more.
The Floating Light of the Goodwin Sands|R.M. Ballantyne
Nembrot, Nimrod; so that his toures hye refers to the tower of Babel.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
It is a life of great interest, complicated by the Tower of Babel, that old enemy.
The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 25 (of 25)|Robert Louis Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for Babel (1 of 2)

Babel¹

/ (ˈbeɪbəl) /

noun

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

(often not capital)

a confusion of noises or voices
a scene of noise and confusion

Word Origin for Babel

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

British Dictionary definitions for Babel (2 of 2)

Babel²

/ (Russian ˈbabɪl) /

noun

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