bounce

/baʊns/

//baʊns// verb

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

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

The verdict

“bounce” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,873. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,873
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To change the direction of motion after hitting an obstacle.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bounce · bounce · English

bounce · rank #6,873 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,873
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH bizarre

Nearest frequency peer: bizarre (-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 “bounce”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “bounce” 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).

bounce vs bunch
67% similar
bounce vs bound
67% similar
bounce vs Bruce
50% similar

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

Key facts for bounce
PropertyValue
Headwordbounce
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/baʊns/
Letters6
Frequency rank#6,873
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “bounce”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).bouncelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “bizarre” (#6,872), “broadcasting” (#6,874), “Bernard” (#6,871). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bounce” is #6,873. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around bounce (IPA /baʊns/), averb. Corpus frequency is #6,873 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 22 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for bounce, with forms such as "bbounce", "bonuce", and "boucne". 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, "bunch", "bound", "Bruce", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English bounsen, bunsen (“to beat, thump”), cognate with Scots bunce, bonce (“to bounce”). Of uncertain origin. Perhaps imitative, related to bump, or related to Middle English bonchen (“to pound, beat”) and Dutch bonken (“to bump”). Compare Sat… The correct English form is bounce, spelled B-O-U-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To change the direction of motion after hitting an obstacle.
  2. 2
    To move quickly up and then down (or vice versa), once or repeatedly.
  3. 3
    To cause to move quickly up and down, or back and forth, once or repeatedly.
  4. 4
    To suggest or introduce (an idea, etc.) to (off or by) someone, in order to gain feedback.
  5. 5
    To leap or spring suddenly or unceremoniously; to bound.
  6. 6
    To move rapidly (between).
  7. 7
    To be refused by a bank because it is drawn on insufficient funds.
  8. 8
    To fail to cover (have sufficient funds for) (a cheque/check drawn on one's account).
  9. 9
    To leave.
  10. 10
    To eject violently, as from a room; to discharge unceremoniously, as from employment.
  11. 11
    To have sexual intercourse.
  12. 12
    To attack unexpectedly.
  13. 13
    To turn power to (a device) off and back on; to reset; to reboot.
  14. 14
    To return undelivered.
  15. 15
    To land hard and lift off again due to excess momentum.
  16. 16
    To land hard at unsurvivable velocity with fatal results.
  17. 17
    To mix (two or more tracks of a multi-track audio recording) and record the result onto a single track, in order to free up tracks for further material to be added.
  18. 18
    To render two or more tracks to computer storage so that they can be played back and re-recorded with further material added.
  19. 19
    To bully; to scold.
  20. 20
    To boast; to bluster.
  21. 21
    To strike or thump, so as to make a sudden noise upon rebound; to knock loudly.
  22. 22
    To race poorly after a successful race.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The tennis ball bounced off the wall before coming to rest in the ditch.
  2. He bounces nervously on his chair.

Etymology

From Middle English bounsen, bunsen (“to beat, thump”), cognate with Scots bunce, bonce (“to bounce”). Of uncertain origin. Perhaps imitative, related to bump, or related to Middle English bonchen (“to pound, beat”) and Dutch bonken (“to bump”). Compare Saterland Frisian bumzje (“to pound, bang, bounce”), West Frisian bûnzje (“to throb, bounce, pulsate”), Dutch bonzen (“to thump, knock, throb, bounce”), German Low German bunsen, bumsen (“to beat, bounce”), German bumsen (“to thud, bang, pound”).

This word in other languages

rebotar(Español)rebondir(Français)abprallen(Deutsch)pular(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbounce
  • bonuce
  • boucne
  • bouncce
  • bounec
  • bounnce
  • buonce
  • obunce

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bounce - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

bbounce1bonuce2boucne2bouncce1bounec2bounnce1buonce2obunce2
Edit distance from "bounce"

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 "bounce"?
"bounce" is spelled B-O-U-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /baʊns/.
What does "bounce" mean?
As a verb, "bounce" means: To change the direction of motion after hitting an obstacle.
What words are commonly confused with "bounce"?
"bounce" is commonly confused with "bunch", "bound", "Bruce". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bounce"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bounce" is /baʊns/. 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 "bounce"?
From Middle English bounsen, bunsen (“to beat, thump”), cognate with Scots bunce, bonce (“to bounce”). Of uncertain origin. Perhaps imitative, related to bump, or related to Middle English bonchen (“to pound, beat”) and Dutch bonken (“to bump”). C... 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 "bounce", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

cannon#6,878chairs#6,881Angela#6,863anchor#6,862

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

bizarre8 variantsvaried8 variantstrunk8 variantssuited8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list