bother

/ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/

//ˈbɔðə(ɹ)// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"bother" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bother” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #3,672. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#3,672
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bother · bother · English

bother · rank #3,672 · 9 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #3,672
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH bench

Nearest frequency peer: bench (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “bother”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “bother” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

bother vs boxer
67% similar
bother vs bower
67% similar
bother vs boyer
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for bother
PropertyValue
Headwordbother
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/
Letters6
Frequency rank#3,672
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “bother”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).botherlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “bench” (#3,671), “broadcast” (#3,673), “Atlantic” (#3,670). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bother” is #3,672. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around bother (IPA /ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/), averb. Corpus frequency is #3,672 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for bother, with forms such as "bbother", "bohter", and "botehr". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "boxer", "bower", "boyer", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Scots bauther, bather (“to bother”). Origin unknown. Perhaps related to Scots pother (“to make a stir or commotion, bustle”), also of unknown origin. Compare English pother (“to poke, prod”), variant of potter (“to poke”). More at potter. Perh… The correct English form is bother, spelled B-O-T-H-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.
  2. 2
    To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.
  3. 3
    To feel care or concern; to burden or inconvenience oneself out of concern.
  4. 4
    To take the trouble, to trouble oneself (to do something).
  5. 5
    To take the trouble, to trouble oneself (to do something).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how bother appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Would it bother you if I smoked?
  2. I never bother about such trivialities.

Etymology

Borrowed from Scots bauther, bather (“to bother”). Origin unknown. Perhaps related to Scots pother (“to make a stir or commotion, bustle”), also of unknown origin. Compare English pother (“to poke, prod”), variant of potter (“to poke”). More at potter. Perhaps related to Irish bodhaire (“noise”), Irish bodhraim (“to deafen, annoy”).

This word in other languages

molestar(Español)bâdrer(Français)stören(Deutsch)incomodar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbother
  • bohter
  • botehr
  • botherr
  • bothher
  • bothre
  • botther
  • btoher
  • obther

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bother - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

bbother1bohter2botehr2botherr1bothher1bothre2botther1btoher2
Edit distance from "bother"

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

How do you spell "bother"?
"bother" is spelled B-O-T-H-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/.
What does "bother" mean?
As a verb, "bother" means: To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for.
What words are commonly confused with "bother"?
"bother" is commonly confused with "boxer", "bower", "boyer". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bother"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bother" is /ˈbɔðə(ɹ)/. 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 "bother"?
Borrowed from Scots bauther, bather (“to bother”). Origin unknown. Perhaps related to Scots pother (“to make a stir or commotion, bustle”), also of unknown origin. Compare English pother (“to poke, prod”), variant of potter (“to poke”). More at po... 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "bother", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

abroad#3,665thrown#3,663Sweden#3,660sudden#3,659

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

Disney9 variantssmooth9 variantsfitness9 variantspoetry9 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list