Etymology: In senses 1, 2, < Old French bail ‘power, custody, jurisdiction,’ and ‘delivery,’ noun of action < baillier , in its senses of ‘take charge of, guard, control,’ and ‘hand over, deliver’ (see bail v.¹). The remaining senses are peculiarly English, and their development not quite certain. But from the Latin phrase tradere in ballium alicui , found 1259, and the Anglo-Norman lesser en bail (1331), it seems that bail was originally related to sense 1, and meant the ‘custody or charge’ (i.e. of the surety); compare also the equivalent mainprise , manucaptio . But it must soon have been associated in meaning with sense 2, and the Anglo-Norman bailler to deliver (chattels), since already in 16th cent. it was explained as ‘the delivery or handing over of the accused to his surety,’ whence transferred to the security in consideration of which he was so delivered, and finally to the surety himself who became or gave security for his reappearance in court when called for judgement. There is nothing approaching these senses in French, while, on the other hand, the French sense ‘lease’ is not in English. French bail , the noun of action, must be carefully distinguished from bail ‘governor, ruler, tutor, guardian’ (= Provençal baile , Spanish bayle , Portuguese bailio , Italian bailo , balio , < Latin bājulus ), never adopted in English (though sometimes erroneously stated to be the direct source of sense 6). Bail=bājulus was the primary word; thence the verb bailler=bājulāre; thence again the noun of action bail formed in French, and adopted in English. (The word is discussed by Coke 4th. Inst. 178.)

Etymology: Middle English beyl, probably < Old Norse beygla, Danish böile, Swedish bögel, bygel, bending, ring, hoop, guard of a sword-handle, etc.; compare also Old Norse beyla hump, swelling (Vigfusson); all from Old Norse beygja = Old English bégan, býgan, to bend, bow. There may even have been an Old English *begel, bygel; compare Low German bögel in same sense.

Etymology: < Old French bail and baile, baille in same sense, of doubtful origin; perhaps verbal nouns < baillier to enclose, shut (1321 in Godefroy), unless indeed they are the source of that word: see bail v.³ Compare also bail n.⁴, and bailey n.It is phonetically possible that bail, baille, represent Latin baculum, plural bacula, sticks, in the sense of ‘stakes, palisade,’ but historical evidence of such a development of sense is wanting.

Etymology: Godefroy says ‘In the arrondissement of Vervains and of Avesnes bail is the name of a horizontal piece of wood fixed upon two stakes.’ This is exactly the cricket bail of the last century: the origin of the French is uncertain; perhaps identical with bail n.³; scarcely an independent representative of Latin baculum.

Etymology: In earlier form baile , < French baille (in nautical language) a bucket, a pail, probably < late Latin bacula , diminutive of baca , bacca , back n.²

Etymology: < Old French baillier, bailier, bailler (= Provençal bailar ) < Latin bājulāre ‘to bear a burden, to carry,’ afterwards ‘to carry on, manage, rule,’ and ‘to be guardian or tutor,’ whence baillier ranged in Old French from ‘bear, carry, handle, treat, manage, conduct, govern, control, rule, take charge of, guard,’ to ‘take hold of, receive, take, take away,’ and ‘hand over, deliver, give.’ From the last of these arose the Anglo-Norman legal sense of ‘deliver,’ narrowed down in use to ‘deliver on trust on certain conditions.’ Sense 2 is probably immediately < bail n.¹ 3, 4, as if short for ‘let to bail, admit to bail,’ but clearly influenced by Anglo-Norman bailler in sense 1, so as to make ‘deliver’ or ‘liberate’ at length the leading idea. Hence extended from the act of the magistrate to that of the surety, and used in various transferred senses.

Etymology: < bail n.²

Etymology: Apparently < Old French baillier to enclose, shut, of doubtful source: immediately related to bail , baille , bail n.³, though it is not yet certain which is derived from the other; if the verb be the source, it may be perhaps only another sense of baillier , to have charge of, control, guard, etc.: see bail v.¹

Etymology: < bail n.⁵

Etymology: Origin uncertain. Probably a specific use of either bale v.² (as if the action were that of letting a bundle through a trapdoor), or of bail v.⁴ (as if the action were that of lading water from a boat), with the evidence of the spelling history perhaps arguing for the latter explanation. In sense 2 short for to bail out at sense 1.