bonus
/ˈbəʊ.nəs/
"bonus" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“bonus” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,281 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #3,281
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Something extra that is good; an added benefit.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | bonus |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈbəʊ.nəs/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #3,281 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “bonus” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for bonus is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbəʊ.nəs/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,281 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for bonus, with forms such as "bbonus", "bnous", and "bonnus". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "bus", "boys", "boss", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin bonus (“good”). Doublet of bona. The correct English form is bonus, spelled B-O-N-U-S.
Definition
- 1Something extra that is good; an added benefit.
- 2An extra sum given as a premium, e.g. to an employee or to a shareholder.
- 3An addition to the player's score based on performance, e.g. for time remaining.
- 4One or more free throws awarded to a team when the opposing team has accumulated enough fouls.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin bonus (“good”). Doublet of bona.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: bbonus,bnous,bonnus,bonsu,bonuss,bouns,obnus
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bonus - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “bonus”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-O-N-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈbəʊ.nəs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “bus” - see the side-by-side comparison. bonus vs bus
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.