boll

¹ American  

[bohl] / boʊl /

noun

Botany.

1. a rounded seed vessel or pod of a plant, as of flax or cotton.

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Böll ² American  

[bœl] / bœl /

noun

1. Heinrich (Theodor) 1917–85, German novelist and short-story writer: Nobel Prize 1972.

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boll ¹ British  

/ bəʊl /

noun

1. the fruit of such plants as flax and cotton, consisting of a rounded capsule containing the seeds

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Böll ² British  

/ bœl /

noun

1. Heinrich (ˈhaɪnrɪç) ( Theodor ). 1917–85, German novelist and short-story writer; his novels include Group Portrait with Lady (1971): Nobel prize for literature 1972

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boll Scientific  

/ bōl /

1. The seed-bearing capsule of certain plants, especially cotton and flax.

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Etymology

Origin of boll

1400–50; late Middle English bolle, perhaps < Middle Dutch bolle ( Dutch bol ), though formally identical with bowl ¹

Example Sentences

Dodson has seen his yields double since the program started and the eradication of the boll weevil has been fruitful for the state’s wider economy.

From Washington Post • Oct. 7, 2022

So the migration is as much about work and the boll weevil as it is about this notion of opportunity.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 20, 2022

We assume he wove it himself out of whatever cotton-esque plants are flourishing after he killed exactly one-half the boll weevils on his planet of refuge.

From Slate • Apr. 25, 2019

The fruit of the cotton boll flower is harvested as a boll, with its fibers transformed into clothing or pulp for paper.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

And I said, “Can’t afford no air-conditioning. Them things eat current like a boll weevil on cotton.”

From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett