borer
/ˈbɔːɹə/
"borer" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“borer” is an uncommon English word, ranked #50,994 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #50,994
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A tool used for drilling.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | borer |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈbɔːɹə/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #50,994 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “borer” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for borer is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbɔːɹə/. Corpus data places it at rank #50,994 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for borer, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From bore + -er. The correct English form is borer, spelled B-O-R-E-R.
Definition
- 1A tool used for drilling.
- 2A knife fit for a stabbing.
- 3A person who bores or drills; a person employed to drill bore holes.
- 4A tedious person, who bores others; a bore.
- 5An insect or insect larva that bores into wood.
- 6One of the many types of mollusc that bore into soft rock.
- 7A cyclostome, such as a hagfish, which bores into injured, dead, or decaying sea creatures to feed on their flesh.
- 8The penetrating root of a parasitic plant.
Etymology
From bore + -er.
This word in other languages
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 “borer”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-O-R-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈbɔːɹə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.