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bond

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

4 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "bond", 4-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "bond" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "bond" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

bond is aEnglishnoun. It means: A document constituting evidence of a long-term debt, by which the bond issuer (the borrower) is obliged to pay interest when due, and repay the principal at maturity, as specified on the face of t... Pronounced /bɒnd/. It ranks #2,517 in English word frequency. Often confused with boy and box.

Key facts for bond
PropertyValue
Headwordbond
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/bɒnd/
Letters4
Frequency rank#2,517
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of bond in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bond is 4 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /bɒnd/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,517 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 15 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 6 documented wrong-spelling variants for bond, with forms such as "bbond", "bnod", and "bodn". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "boy", "box", "bow", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English bond, a variant of band, from Old English beand, bænd, bend (“bond, chain, fetter, band, ribbon, ornament, chaplet, crown”), from Proto-Germanic *bandaz, *bandiz (“band, fetter”). Cognate with Dutch band, German Band, Swedish band. Doubl… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is bond, spelled B-O-N-D, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A document constituting evidence of a long-term debt, by which the bond issuer (the borrower) is obliged to pay interest when due, and repay the principal at maturity, as specified on the face of the bond certificate. The rights of the holder are specified in the bond indenture, which contains the legal terms and conditions under which the bond was issued. Bonds are available in two forms: registered bonds, and bearer bonds.
  2. 2
    A documentary obligation to pay a sum or to perform a contract; a debenture.
  3. 3
    A partial payment made to show a provider that the customer is sincere about buying a product or a service. If the product or service is not purchased the customer then forfeits the bond.
  4. 4
    A physical connection which binds, a band.
  5. 5
    An emotional link, connection or union; that which holds two or more people together, as in a friendship; a tie.
  6. 6
    Moral or political duty or obligation.
  7. 7
    A link or force between neighbouring atoms in a molecule.
  8. 8
    A binding agreement, a covenant.
  9. 9
    The state of being stored in a bonded warehouse
  10. 10
    A bail bond.
  11. 11
    Bond paper.
  12. 12
    Any constraining or cementing force or material.
  13. 13
    In building, a specific pattern of bricklaying, based on overlapping rows or layers to give strength.
  14. 14
    A mortgage.
  15. 15
    A heavy copper wire or rod connecting adjacent rails of an electric railway track when used as a part of the electric circuit.

Etymology

From Middle English bond, a variant of band, from Old English beand, bænd, bend (“bond, chain, fetter, band, ribbon, ornament, chaplet, crown”), from Proto-Germanic *bandaz, *bandiz (“band, fetter”). Cognate with Dutch band, German Band, Swedish band. Doublet of Bund. Related to bind.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbond,bnod,bodn,bondd,bonnd,obnd

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for bond

Misspelling Variants of "bond"

bbond5bnod4bodn4bondd5bonnd5obnd4
Misspelling Variants of "bond"

Frequency rank: #2,517 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bond"?
"bond" is spelled B-O-N-D. The IPA pronunciation is /bɒnd/.
What does "bond" mean?
As a noun, "bond" means: A document constituting evidence of a long-term debt, by which the bond issuer (the borrower) is obliged to pay interest when due, and repay the principal at maturity, as specified on the face of t...
What words are commonly confused with "bond"?
"bond" is commonly confused with "boy", "box", "bow". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bond"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bond" is /bɒnd/. 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 "bond"?
From Middle English bond, a variant of band, from Old English beand, bænd, bend (“bond, chain, fetter, band, ribbon, ornament, chaplet, crown”), from Proto-Germanic *bandaz, *bandiz (“band, fetter”). Cognate with Dutch band, German Band, Swedish b... 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter B in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.