# bike

> English word · Noun · IPA /baɪk/ · frequency rank #2,819

## Definitions
1. Clipping of bicycle.
2. Clipping of motorbike.
3. Any vehicle sharing some characteristics with a bicycle or motorbike, such as pedal power, a handlebar, or a saddle.
4. Ellipsis of village bike.

## Etymology
Clipping of bicycle. First attested in 1882.
One explanation for the form with /k/ is that bicycle was parsed to bi(cy)c(le). An alternative explanation is that it was parsed to bic(ycle) but since speakers are aware of a general /k/~/s/ alternation (as in electric ~ electricity etc.), the softened /s/ was restored to a default /k/ when the “ending” -ycle was dropped. A similar case is merc /mɜɹk/ for mercenary. It seems unlikely, however, that this process is purely phonological and not at least partially based on the spelling ⟨c⟩.

## Easily confused with
- **bit** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bit)
- **bye** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bye)
- **bin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bin)
- **bio** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bio)
- **bis** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bis)
- **biz** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-biz)
- **bok** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bok)
- **Boe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-boe)
- **bim** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bim)
- **Bir** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bir)
- **BLE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-ble)
- **bill** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bill)
- **blue** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-blue)
- **bird** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bird)
- **bone** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bone)
- **bite** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bite)
- **bits** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bits)
- **bore** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bore)
- **bind** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bind)
- **bing** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/bike-vs-bing)

## Common misspellings (5)
`bbike`, `biek`, `bikke`, `bkie`, `ibke`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/bike