bolster
/ˈbɒlstə/noun, verb
bolster is spelled B-O-L-S-T-E-R: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,336th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bolster means “A large cushion or pillow, usually cylindrical in shape” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bolster is bolsters.
How many letters and syllables are in bolster?
| Letters | 7: B-O-L-S-T-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.0 times per million words; the 19,336th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is bolster?
Bolster appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,336th 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 bolster?
- UK /ˈbɒlstə/
- UK /ˈbəʊlstə/
- UK [ˈbɒʊlstə]
Bolster has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-bolster.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with bolster?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as bolster from its last stressed vowel (/ɒlstə/, British pronunciation):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: lobster.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of bolster
- bolsters plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- boulster
- bowster
- bouster
- boster
- bolstering participle, present
- bolstered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bolster mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A large cushion or pillow, usually cylindrical in shape.
- 2
A pad, quilt, or anything used to hinder pressure, support part of the body, or make a bandage sit easy upon a wounded part; a compress.
- 3
A small spacer located on top of the axle of horse-drawn wagons that gives the front wheels enough clearance to turn.
- 4
A short, horizontal structural timber between a post and a beam for enlarging the bearing area of the post and/or reducing the span of the beam.
- 5
A beam in the middle of a railway truck, supporting the body of the car.
- 6
The perforated plate in a punching machine on which anything rests when being punched.
- 7
The part of a knife blade that abuts upon the end of the handle.
- 8
The metallic end of a pocketknife handle.
verb
- 1
To brace, reinforce, secure, or support.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bolster in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | traversin , soutenir, renforcer, appuyer |
| German | Polster, Nackenrolle , polstern, unterstützen, verstärken, bestärken |
| Portuguese | cabeceira, travesseiro , apoiar |
| Spanish | cabecera, almohada, almohadón , zapata , matriz , volutas |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does bolster come from?
From Middle English bolster, bolstre, from Old English bolster (“pillow”), from Proto-West Germanic *bolstr, from Proto-Germanic *bulstraz (“pillow, cushion”). Cognate with Scots bowster (“bolster”), West Frisian bulster (“mattress”), Dutch bolster (“husk, shell”), German Polster (“bolster, pillow, pad”), Swedish bolster (“soft mattress, bolster”), Icelandic bólstur (“pillow”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).