bicycle

/ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/

//ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"bicycle" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bicycle” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,314. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,314
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
11
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A vehicle that has two primary wheels, one behind the other, a steering handle, and a saddle seat or seats and is usually propelled by the action of a rider’s feet upon pedals.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bicycle · bicycle · English

bicycle · rank #7,314 · 11 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,314
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH bean

Nearest frequency peer: bean (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “bicycle”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “bicycle” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bicycle
PropertyValue
Headwordbicycle
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/
Letters7
Frequency rank#7,314
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “bicycle”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).bicyclelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “bean” (#7,313), “Bryan” (#7,315), “atomic” (#7,312). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bicycle” is #7,314. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around bicycle (IPA /ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #7,314 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 10 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for bicycle, with forms such as "bbicycle", "bciycle", and "biccycle". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. Our dataset records no confusable match here, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwís Proto-Italic *dwis Old Latin duis Latin bisder. French bi- Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- Proto-Indo-European *kʷékʷlos Ancient Greek κῠ́κλος (kŭ́klos)der. Late Latin cyclusder. Middle French F… The correct English form is bicycle, spelled B-I-C-Y-C-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A vehicle that has two primary wheels, one behind the other, a steering handle, and a saddle seat or seats and is usually propelled by the action of a rider’s feet upon pedals.
  2. 2
    Any similar vehicle powered by human pedaling or steered with a handlebar, regardless of the number of wheels.
  3. 3
    A traveling block used on a cable in skidding logs.
  4. 4
    The best possible hand in lowball.
  5. 5
    A motorbike.
  6. 6
    A slut; a promiscuous woman.
  7. 7
    A stabilizing technique in which one foot is pushed down while the other is pulled up.
  8. 8
    The wheel: either the lowest straight (A-2-3-4-5) or the best low hand in Lowball or High-low poker.
  9. 9
    A bicyclic molecule.
  10. 10
    Two interconnected metabolic cycles.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how bicycle appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. In most English villages, as we are informed, bicycles are not allowed on the sidewalks; and the hand-books issued by English manufacturers of bicycles caution their customers that it is a forbidden practice, while in many places bells have to be attached to the bicycles even when ridden in the streets.
  2. The small, three-wheeled bicycle-type vehicle is probably the lowest-cost set of wheels for routine, in-park patrol use.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwís Proto-Italic *dwis Old Latin duis Latin bisder. French bi- Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- Proto-Indo-European *kʷékʷlos Ancient Greek κῠ́κλος (kŭ́klos)der. Late Latin cyclusder. Middle French French cycle French bicyclebor. English bicycle Borrowed from French bicycle (modern bicyclette), from bi- (“two”) + cycle (“cycle”). By surface analysis, bi- + cycle. First attested in English in 1868, and in French in 1847. (promiscuous woman): From double meaning of ride ("to transport oneself upon" vs. "to mount someone to have sex with them"). A communal bicycle would have many riders.

Synonyms

bicyclebikeceleripedecyclevelocipede

This word in other languages

bicicleta(Español)vélo(Français)Fahrrad(Deutsch)bicicleta(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbicycle
  • bciycle
  • biccycle
  • biccyle
  • bicyccle
  • bicycel
  • bicyclle
  • bicylce
  • bicyycle
  • biyccle
  • ibcycle

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bicycle - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

bbicycle1bciycle2biccycle1biccyle2bicyccle1bicycel2bicyclle1bicylce2
Edit distance from "bicycle"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bicycle"?
"bicycle" is spelled B-I-C-Y-C-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/.
What does "bicycle" mean?
As a noun, "bicycle" means: A vehicle that has two primary wheels, one behind the other, a steering handle, and a saddle seat or seats and is usually propelled by the action of a rider’s feet upon pedals.
What are common misspellings of "bicycle"?
Common misspellings include "bbicycle", "bciycle", "biccycle", "biccyle", "bicyccle". The correct spelling is "bicycle".
How do you pronounce "bicycle"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bicycle" is /ˈbaɪsɪk(ə)l/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "bicycle"?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwís Proto-Italic *dwis Old Latin duis Latin bisder. French bi- Proto-Indo-European *kʷel- Proto-Indo-European *kʷékʷlos Ancient Greek κῠ́κλος (kŭ́klos)der. Late Latin cyclusder. Middl... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "bicycle", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

archive#7,311buttons#7,317cocaine#7,321Abraham#7,306

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

acoustic11 variantscrowded11 variantsStevens11 variantspraying11 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list