bails

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of bail.

   A gust of wind sent the bails tumbling from the wickets.

   Old enamel kettles often had wooden grips fixed to their wire bails.

   Note

   One spelling covers two quite different nouns. On the legal side, bail is the security posted so that an arrested person can be released. In UK usage it can also name the release itself or the person who pays. On the water, a bail is the bucket or scoop used to empty a boat. Because the legal sense is so often uncountable, the plural sits most naturally with the countable things: scoops, or the people who bail.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of bail.

   Whenever the canoe takes on water, he bails it out with a tin cup.

   The charity often bails out families who fall behind on rent.

   Note

   On a boat, either thing can be the object: someone bails the water out, or bails the boat itself, or simply bails with no object at all. In law the object is a person. A friend bails a prisoner by providing the security, and a court bails someone by releasing them under it. The spelling matches the plural noun, so the sentence around it shows which is meant.

Showing meanings only. Show all 2