barnburner
noun
barnburner is spelled B-A-R-N-B-U-R-N-E-R: 10 letters. It appears about once in every 41 million words in written English, the 196,618th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, barnburner means “One who burns down a barn” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of barnburner is barnburners.
How many letters and syllables are in barnburner?
| Letters | 10: B-A-R-N-B-U-R-N-E-R |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 41 million words; the 196,618th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is barnburner?
Barnburner appears about once in every 41 million words in written English, the 196,618th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce barnburner?
- Australia
- Australia
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-barnburner.ogg, En-au-Barnburner.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of barnburner
- barnburners plural
- barn burner
- barn-burner
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does barnburner mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
One who burns down a barn.
- 2
slangSynonym of phosphorus match, a friction match that can be struck anywhere.
- 3
A sensationally exciting or successful event or person.
noun
- 1
USslangA member of the radical section of the Democratic party in New York, around the middle of the 19th century, which was hostile to extension of slavery, public debts, corporate privileges, etc., and supported Van Buren against Cass for president in 1848.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does barnburner come from?
From barn + burner. In exaggerated use, from the hyperbolic idea of someone burning down a barn to end a rat infestation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).