barb C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary US /bɑːrb/ UK /bɑːb/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a sharp backward point; a cutting or wounding remark Her witty reply carried a barb that stung for hours. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a sharp backward point; a... pointspikepricklejibetauntdigsneer Word family Forms barbless Derived forms barbedbarblessbarby Related forms barbelbarberbeard Etymology AI details From Old French barbe ('beard, barb'), from Latin barba ('beard'), the projecting point being likened to a beard. barbe Old French barba Latin *bʰardʰeh₂ Proto-Indo-European View etymology graph -> Topics General Vocabulary External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # barb **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /bɑːrb/ **IPA (UK):** /bɑːb/ ## Meanings 1. a sharp backward point; a cutting or wounding remark ## Examples - Her witty reply carried a barb that stung for hours. ## Synonyms - point - spike - prickle - jibe - taunt - dig - sneer ## Derived Forms - barbed - barbless - barby ## Related Forms - barbel - barber - beard ## Roots and Affixes - Root: barbe - Root: barba - Root: *bʰardʰeh₂ ## Etymology From Old French barbe ('beard, barb'), from Latin barba ('beard'), the projecting point being likened to a beard. ## AI Etymology Barb is from Old French barbe ('beard, barb'), from Latin barba ('beard'), the projecting point being likened to a beard. Important recorded forms include barbe (Old French), barba (Latin), and *bʰardʰeh₂ (Proto-Indo-European). The current sense covers a sharp backward point; a cutting or wounding remark. The wider family includes derived forms such as barbed, barbless, and barby and related words such as barbel, barber, and beard. ## Topics - General Vocabulary markdown