noun
baba
BAH-bah
noun
1
A small, rich cake soaked in rum or other flavored syrup.
"The bakery's rum baba was soaked until it nearly fell apart on the fork."
2
In various cultures, an informal word for a father, grandmother, or other family elder.
"She called her grandfather "baba" from the time she could talk."
3
A respected spiritual teacher or holy man, especially in South Asian traditions.
"Pilgrims traveled far to seek the baba's blessing."
How to Use Baba
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishDepending on context: a syrup-soaked cake, or a family/spiritual term of address used in many cultures.
Word Forms
babas plural, Babas plural
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The bakery's rum _____ was soaked until it nearly fell apart on the fork.
Etymology
One of the earliest sounds babies make, adopted across many unrelated languages as a word for close family members like father or grandmother; the cake sense comes through French from Polish baba ("old woman").