bale
1a large bundle or package prepared for shipping, storage, or sale, especially one tightly compressed and secured by wires, hoops, cords, or the like, and sometimes having a wrapping or covering: a bale of cotton; a bale of hay.
a group of turtles.
to make or form into bales: to bale wastepaper for disposal.
Origin of bale
1Other words from bale
- baleless, adjective
- baler, noun
Other definitions for bale (2 of 5)
evil; harm; misfortune.
woe; misery; sorrow.
Origin of bale
2Other definitions for bale (3 of 5)
Other definitions for bale (4 of 5)
Other definitions for Bâle (5 of 5)
French name of Basel.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use bale in a sentence
“Bales is the beginning and not the end,” says Swift of the PTSD cases.
Will a Military Panel Show Any Mercy for Staff Sgt. Robert Bales? | Christine Pelisek | August 21, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTWhether that message resonates beyond the coverage of Bales case, though, remains to be seen.
Bales, Accused of Massacring Afghans, Will Try to Put the War on Trial | Winston Ross | January 3, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTBales reportedly showed risk factors for alcohol abuse, including violent behavior while drunk.
Pendleton Marines’ Car Crash Raises Questions of Alcohol Abuse in Military | Jamie Reno | June 17, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTThe government has since sequestered Karilyn Bales and her two children on base in the wake of the killings.
Military’s Internet Scrub of Robert Bales Data Was a Futile Whitewash Bid | Winston Ross | March 26, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTIs Bales a rogue soldier with a drinking problem who went off on a killing spree?
Military’s Internet Scrub of Robert Bales Data Was a Futile Whitewash Bid | Winston Ross | March 26, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
The bales of tobacco are carried on the backs of mules or horses to the city or to the nearest railway station.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.It appears, when hanging in bales at the shop-doors, like bundles of thick ragged leather.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil | Maria GrahamThe (p. 469) bales average in weight about forty oques (110 English pounds).
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.The covering of the bales is a sort of netting made by the peasants from goat's hair; it is elastic and of great strength.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.Manilla tobacco is shipped in bales containing four hundred pounds net.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.
British Dictionary definitions for bale (1 of 5)
/ (beɪl) /
a large bundle, esp of a raw or partially processed material, bound by ropes, wires, etc, for storage or transportation: bale of hay
a large package or carton of goods
US 500 pounds of cotton
a group of turtles
Australian and NZ See wool bale
to make (hay, etc) into a bale or bales
to put (goods) into packages or cartons
Australian and NZ to pack and compress (wool) into wool bales
Origin of bale
1- See also bail out
British Dictionary definitions for bale (2 of 5)
/ (beɪl) /
evil; injury
woe; suffering; pain
Origin of bale
2British Dictionary definitions for bale (3 of 5)
/ (beɪl) /
a variant spelling of bail 2
British Dictionary definitions for bale (4 of 5)
/ (beɪl) /
a variant spelling of bail 4
British Dictionary definitions for Bâle (5 of 5)
/ (bɑl) /
the French name for Basle
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
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