brusque

/bɹʊsk/

//bɹʊsk// adj

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

"brusque" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“brusque” is uncommon English (frequency #60,673 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#60,673
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Rudely abrupt; curt, unfriendly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-brusque · brusque · English

brusque · rank #60,673 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #60,673
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Bry

Nearest frequency peer: Bry (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “brusque”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “brusque” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for brusque
PropertyValue
Headwordbrusque
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/bɹʊsk/
Letters7
Frequency rank#60,673
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “brusque” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).brusquefalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “Bry” (#60,674), “Bucknell” (#60,676), “boughs” (#60,669). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “brusque” is #60,673. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

brusque is uncommon English at frequency #60,673 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /bɹʊsk/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for brusque, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: The adjective is borrowed from French brusque, from Italian brusco (“abrupt, sudden, brusque; brisk; eager; sour, tart; unripe; grim-looking”); further etymology unknown. The verb is derived from the adjective. The correct English form is brusque, spelled B-R-U-S-Q-U-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Rudely abrupt; curt, unfriendly.
  2. 2
    Sour, tart.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Mr. VValler, being probably of opinion that Monſieur Palamede’s arguments vvere too bruſque to be advanc’d in a diſpute vvith a Lady, vvho number’d not fevver than tvventy Kings of her progenitors, vvrote this poem in a more tender and courtly ſtyle; […]
  2. [A]ll the answer Miss Jarron got was a brusque refusal, followed by Mr. Camperton's retreat from the piano.

Etymology

The adjective is borrowed from French brusque, from Italian brusco (“abrupt, sudden, brusque; brisk; eager; sour, tart; unripe; grim-looking”); further etymology unknown. The verb is derived from the adjective.

This word in other languages

brusco(Español)brusque(Français)brüsk(Deutsch)brusco(Português)

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 "brusque"?
"brusque" is spelled B-R-U-S-Q-U-E. The IPA pronunciation is /bɹʊsk/.
What does "brusque" mean?
As an adjective, "brusque" means: Rudely abrupt; curt, unfriendly.
How do you pronounce "brusque"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "brusque" is /bɹʊsk/. 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 "brusque"?
The adjective is borrowed from French brusque, from Italian brusco (“abrupt, sudden, brusque; brisk; eager; sour, tart; unripe; grim-looking”); further etymology unknown. The verb is derived from the adjective. 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 "brusque", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Boracay#60,668boombox#60,667burping#60,679Bolling#60,664

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list