blur

/ˈblɜː/

//ˈblɜː// verb

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

"blur" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“blur” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,867. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,867
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To make indistinct or hazy, to obscure or dim.

Corpus desk

Index EN-blur · blur · English

blur · rank #13,867 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,867
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH blond

Nearest frequency peer: blond (-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 “blur”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “blur” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

blur vs br
50% similar
blur vs but
50% similar
blur vs buy
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for blur
PropertyValue
Headwordblur
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈblɜː/
Letters4
Frequency rank#13,867
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “blur”

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).blurlands 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 “blond” (#13,866), “bloke” (#13,865), “boogie” (#13,869). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “blur” is #13,867. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around blur (IPA /ˈblɜː/), averb. Corpus frequency is #13,867 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for blur, with forms such as "bblur", "bllur", and "blru". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "br", "but", "buy", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier blurre, probably an alteration of blear, from Middle English bleren, from Old English *blerian (attested in āblered (“made bare, made bald”)), from Proto-West Germanic *blaʀjan, from Proto-Germanic *blazjaną (“to make pale”), from Proto-Germani… The correct English form is blur, spelled B-L-U-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    To make indistinct or hazy, to obscure or dim.
  2. 2
    To smear, stain or smudge.
  3. 3
    To become indistinct.
  4. 4
    To cause imperfection of vision in; to dim; to darken.
  5. 5
    To sully; to stain; to blemish, as reputation.
  6. 6
    To transfer the input focus away from.
  7. 7
    To use a sign, image, expression, etc. sufficiently close to a trademarked one that it causes confusion between them.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. to blur a photograph (by moving the camera while taking it)
  2. to blur a manuscript (by handling it while damp)

Etymology

From earlier blurre, probably an alteration of blear, from Middle English bleren, from Old English *blerian (attested in āblered (“made bare, made bald”)), from Proto-West Germanic *blaʀjan, from Proto-Germanic *blazjaną (“to make pale”), from Proto-Germanic *blasaz (“pale”). Compare Scots blore, bloar (“to blur, cover with blots”), Low German bleeroged (“blear-eyed”). More at blear.

Antonyms

sharpen

This word in other languages

desdibujar(Español)estomper(Français)verschwimmen(Deutsch)borrar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bblur
  • bllur
  • blru
  • blurr
  • bulr
  • lbur

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of blur - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bblur1bllur1blru2blurr1bulr2lbur2
Edit distance from "blur"

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 "blur"?
"blur" is spelled B-L-U-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈblɜː/.
What does "blur" mean?
As a verb, "blur" means: To make indistinct or hazy, to obscure or dim.
What words are commonly confused with "blur"?
"blur" is commonly confused with "br", "but", "buy". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "blur"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "blur" is /ˈblɜː/. 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 "blur"?
From earlier blurre, probably an alteration of blear, from Middle English bleren, from Old English *blerian (attested in āblered (“made bare, made bald”)), from Proto-West Germanic *blaʀjan, from Proto-Germanic *blazjaną (“to make pale”), from Pro... 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 "blur", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

brow#13,874Zack#13,846Cory#13,892Toni#13,829

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

Wyatt6 variantswitty6 variantstaps6 variantssavvy6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list