Vitamin B

• IPA^(key): /vitamiːn ˈbeː/, [vi.taˌmiːn ˈbeː], [ˌvɪ-], [ˌviː-], [ʋ-]
• Secondary stress would fall on /miːn/ by default, but tends to be retracted to the first syllable.

From Vitamin (“vitamin”), the umbrella term. This subgroup was categorised by Elmer McCollum in 1916 as water-soluble factor B (later vitamin B), hence the letter B.

Vitamin B n (strong, genitive Vitamins B, plural Vitamine B)

1. (biochemistry) the Vitamin B complex (collectively), or a particular member of it (as totum pro parte)

• B-Vitamin

Humorous re-interpretation of Etymology 1, interpreting B as an abbreviation for Beziehungen (“connections”) and alluding to their vital importance. Compare Gulf Arabic فيتامين و (vītāmīn wāw, “vitamin W, i.e. nepotism”) and, more loosely, Persian بند «پ» (band-e p, “paragraph P, i.e. nepotism, cronyism”).

Vitamin B n (strong, genitive Vitamins B, no plural)

1. (colloquial) connections (people with whom one is acquainted who can offer help and influence)
   • 2019, “Die Kraft von „Vitamin B“: Wie man Empfehlungen zur Jobsuche nutzt”, in Joblog/Manpower‎, archived from the original on 31 December 2019:

     Gute Beziehungen sind Gold wert – und werden auch auf dem Arbeitsmarkt immer wichtiger. Vitamin B hilft bei der Jobsuche: Fast jeder dritte Job wird heute über Kontakte vergeben, erklärt das Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung in einer Studie.

     Good connections are worth a mint―and are getting more and more important in the job market, too. Vitamin B helps with job hunting: Nearly every third job is nowadays assigned via personal contacts, says the Institute for Job Market and Professions Research.