Add One or More Letters to BAR Quiz

Answer: barge

A barge is a boat with a flat bottom. They are mostly used for carrying cargo on rivers or lakes. Some have motors and are self-propelled, but others do not and so must be towed to their destinations. Before the United States had an extensive system of railroads, barges were even more widely used to carry goods over long distances.

Answer: Barack

Barack Obama was the 44th president of the United States. He was the U.S.'s first African-American president. He was elected in 2008 and again in 2012, and so served from January 2009 until January 2017.

Answer: barber

A barber is a hairdresser who only, or mostly, cuts men's and boys' hair. Although many years ago a barber often cut both men's and women's hair, eventually the people who cut women's hair became known as cosmetologists. A barber typically cuts hair in a barber shop, but some come to people's homes and in some countries there are street barbers.

The red and white "barber pole" is a reminder that long ago barbers were often surgeons too.

Answer: barn

A barn is a very common sight on farms. They have a great many uses. Barns can be used for cattle or sheep or other animals, although a building that houses horses is often called a stable. Barns can hold farm machinery, like tractors or harvesters, or grains and hay. They are often separate buildings from where the farming family lives, but in some cases the living quarters and the barn are one unit.

Answer: barter

Bartering means trading one thing for another without using money. You barter with a friend when you trade items without paying. Before systems of money were developed by people, there were extensive systems of bartering. For example, hunters would trade meat for grain or for weapons with people who grew crops or made arrows or spears.

Answer: barb

A barb is the part of a normal fishhook that points backward and makes it harder for the fish to pull away from the hook. Barb wire is a kind of fence material with sharp points spaced along the wire. The word "barb" originally meant "beard," and it's easy to see why a tough bristly beard could lead to its current meaning. "Barb" is also a nickname for people named Barbara.

Answer: bark

Dogs bark! Actually most dogs bark. There is one breed, the Basenji, that cannot. Some people consider "bark" to be an onomatopoeia, a word that sounds like what it means (like "pow!"). That certainly sounds logical. There also is some evidence for this, since "bark" comes from an old word meaning "break," and a dog's bark can sound like something breaking.

Answer: barfed

I hope you have never had to barf, but the odds are you have at some point, especially if you've been sick or made yourself very dizzy. Why "barf" has become a term that means vomiting is unknown, but it may be another example of onomatopoeia.

Answer: barrel

A barrel is a general term for a container in the shape of a cylinder. Although smaller containers sometimes are called barrels, a barrel is usually a fairly large (dozens of gallons) container. Barrels are usually made of wood. The term for a barrel maker is "cooper." In the past barrels were very common and used for dry goods, beer, oil, wine, etc. Today the most common use for wooden barrels is the wine or beer industry. When people talk about "barrels of oil" the word "barrel" refers to a measure (42 gallons) not a physical barrel. In fact oil is shipped in steel drums most commonly.

Answer: barley

Barley is a very common grain used in many different foods. It has been the fourth most used grain, behind corn, rice, and wheat. Technically it is a grass. Barley soup can be a healthy food, as can whole grain barley bread. It is a very important ingredient in beer production.