noun
[noncount] :an amount of money given to a court to allow a prisoner to leave jail and return later for a trial The bail paid by a person accused of a crime is returned when the person comes back to court for a trial. To set bail is to decide how much money a person must pay in order to get out of jail until a trial.
verb
bails; bailed; bailing
compare 3bail
bail out
[phrasal verb]
bail (someone) out or bail out (someone) :to make it possible for someone to leave jail by paying bail
bail (someone or something) out or bail out (someone or something) :to help (someone) solve a problem or leave a difficult situation
verb
bails; bailed; bailing
[+ obj] :to remove or throw water from or out of a boat
[no obj] US informal :to leave a difficult situation
bail out
[phrasal verb] chiefly US
to jump out of an airplane with a parachute
to leave or escape a harmful or difficult situation