bot
/bɑt/noun, verb
bot is spelled B-O-T: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 6.6 times per million words in written English, the 9,313th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bot means “The larva of a botfly, which infests the skin of various mammals, producing warbles, or the nasal passage of sheep, or the stomach of horses” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bot is bots or 'bots.
How many letters and syllables are in bot?
| Letters | 3: B-O-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 6.6 times per million words; the 9,313th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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 bot?
Bot appears 6.6 times per million words in written English, the 9,313th 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 bot?
- UK /bɒt/
- US /bɑt/
Bot has one syllable (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-bot.wav, En-us-bot.ogg, EN-AU_ck1_bot.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with bot
Also written: bott.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with bot?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as bot from its last stressed vowel (/ɑt/):
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 bot
- bots plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bott
- botting participle, present
- botted participle, past
- 'bot
- 'bots plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bot mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The larva of a botfly, which infests the skin of various mammals, producing warbles, or the nasal passage of sheep, or the stomach of horses.
- 2
UKslangThe bottom or backside.
- 3
informalA physical robot.
- 4
A piece of software designed to perform a task (often a minor but repetitive one) automatically or on command, especially when operating with the appearance of a (human) user profile or account.
- 5
A computer-controlled character in a video game, especially a multiplayer one.
- 6
derogatoryslangA supremely unskilled player.
- 7
derogatoryA person with no ability to think for themselves; (by extension) an unintelligent or contemptible person.
verb
- 1
UKslangTo bugger.
- 2
AustraliainformalTo ask for and be given something with the direct intention of exploiting the thing’s usefulness, almost exclusively with cigarettes.
Can I bot a smoke?
- 3
To use a bot, or automated program.
Players caught botting will be banned from the server.
noun
- 1
Initialism of beginning of tape.
- 2
Initialism of Build–operate–transfer.
- 3
Abbreviation of Bǽh-oe-tu.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bot in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 bot come from?
Unknown. Possibly a modification of Scottish Gaelic boiteag (“maggot”), but the word already existed in Middle English, so the reverse direction of borrowing is likely. Possibly from Middle Low German [Term?].
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).