# Bills

/ˈbɪɫz/ (US) · /bˈɪlz/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/bills
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. money owed

noun · CEFR A2

written lists showing how much money you owe for things like electricity or food.

For teachers: statements of money owed for goods or services provided.

- He sat at the kitchen table and tried to pay all his monthly bills.
- The household expenses rose sharply during the winter months, leaving the family struggling to settle their utility bills on time.

### 2. paper money

noun · CEFR A2 · American English

pieces of paper money.

For teachers: banknotes or pieces of paper currency.

- She reached into her wallet and pulled out two ten-dollar bills.
- The cashier carefully counted the stack of twenty-dollar bills before placing them securely in the register.

### 3. proposed laws

noun · CEFR B2

formal plans for new laws that a government is discussing.

For teachers: drafts of proposed laws presented to a legislature for discussion.

- The government is debating several new bills about environmental protection.
- Parliamentary sessions were extended late into the night as members debated the technical nuances of the proposed education bills.

### 4. bird beaks

noun · CEFR B2

the hard, pointed parts of a bird's mouth.

For teachers: the horny projecting mouthparts of a bird.

- The ducks used their flat bills to search for food in the mud.
- Ornithologists observed how the different species had evolved specialized bills to access specific types of seeds and insects.

## Examples

- I need to pay the electricity bill today.
- After we finished our dinner, the waiter brought the bill to our table.
- The sudden increase in monthly utility bills forced the family to reconsider their energy consumption and invest in better home insulation.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.