Confusing Words: Bail (noun/verb) and Bale (noun/verb)
Meaning:
Bail (the temporary release of an accused person awaiting trial, sometimes on condition that a sum of money is lodged to guarantee their appearance in court.)
Bale (a large wrapped or bound bundle of paper, hay, or cotton.)
Clarification: Bail and bale are not interchangeable. They are homophones.
Bail vs Bale – What is the Difference, Definition & Meaning?
Homophones are said to be the most confusing words in English vocabulary. Writers should be careful with word choice. Incorrect word choice can give a very bad impression on their writings. Today, I am coming up with two such words that can be confusing because these words are homophones.
When you speak out bail and bale together, you will feel that both of these words sound exactly same. This is the reason of the confusion between these words.
However, the meanings and the functions of both of these words are totally different from each other.
Continue reading the post to get out of your confusion!
Bail
The word ‘bail’ is used as a noun or a verb within sentences. As a noun, it means release of a prisoner or an accused person, not permanently but temporarily. For example,
1. He was accused of murder, but was released on bail.
2. His bail was refused by the honorable judge.
As a verb, bail means to remove water by using a container; to release an accused person by paying as his/her guarantee. For example,
1. Nobody got the news because he was immediately bailed out of the jail.
2. The captain called everyone to bail out the boat.
Bale
Like bail, bale is also used as a noun or a verb within sentences. As a noun, it is used to refer something (such as, paper or cotton etc.) tightly bundled or packed together. For example,
1. At the end, he was not able to grab another bale of cotton.
2. I have ordered hundreds of bales of straws and got them today.
As a verb, bale means to make or pack (something) into bales. For example,
1. The manager ordered his workers to bale out all the extra papers.
2. He further baled the bales of cotton.
Got the Difference?
I hope from the above discussion it is now clear that bale and bail are two different words that cannot be interchangeable. Both of these words are homophones. Their pronunciation is same but the meanings are totally different from each other.
Bale + Bail = Homophones
To bale is to pack something whereas, to bail is to release a prisoner or to remove water from a boat.
What Did You Learn?
Bail and bale are not interchangeable. They are homophones. Both of these words can be used as nouns or verbs within sentences.
Bale is used to refer something that is tightly bundled together or it can be the process of packaging. On the other hand, bail is the release of a prisoner; it can be the process of removing the water from a boat or to release an accused person.