# barb vs bard

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### barb
*noun · IPA /bɑː(ɹ)b/ · frequency rank #19,268*
The point that stands backward in an arrow, fishhook, etc., to prevent it from being easily extracted. Hence: Anything which stands out with a sharp point obliquely or crosswise to something else.

### bard
*noun · IPA /bɑːd/ · frequency rank #18,490*
A professional poet and singer, like among the ancient Celts, whose occupation was to compose and sing verses in honor of the heroic achievements of princes and brave men.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/barb-vs-bard