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• boll
  boll

  noun

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

  noun

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

boll

¹ American  

[bohl] / boʊl /

noun

Botany.

bolls plural

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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Böll ¹ 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 ² 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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boll Scientific  

/ bōl /

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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bolls
  plural

Etymology

Origin of boll

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

Example Sentences

If either he or Boll hoped Musk’s endorsement would boost the film’s profile, they’ll be sorely mistaken: Bot armies don’t pay to rent movies.

From Salon • Jun. 30, 2026

Friday, New York time, Boll said, and six hours later, she was gone.

From Los Angeles Times • May 30, 2025

She died at her home in New York at age 87, her publicist Harlan Boll told the BBC.

From BBC • May 30, 2025

The Heinrich Boll Foundation, which co-sponsors the prize, said that the prize would be given “in a different setting.”

From New York Times • Dec. 15, 2023

The rest will pass buckets, and John Boll and Tom Donnell can handle the nozzles.

From The Young Firemen of Lakeville; or, Herbert Dare's Pluck by Webster, Frank V.