bugger

/ˈbʌɡəɹ/noun, verb, interjection

bugger is spelled B-U-G-G-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.0 times per million words in written English, the 28,918th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bugger means “Someone who commits buggery; a sodomite” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bugger is buggers.

How many letters and syllables are in bugger?

Letters	6: B-U-G-G-E-R
Syllables	2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing	1.0 times per million words; the 28,918th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searched	none measured in search
Rhymes with	slugger hugger debugger mugger more

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 bugger?

Bugger appears 1.0 times per million words in written English, the 28,918th most frequent word form in the list.

bugger0.0010.010.11101001,00010,000

rarerper million words of written Englishmore common

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce bugger?

UK /ˈbʌɡə/
US /ˈbʌɡəɹ/

Bugger has 2 syllables (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: En-uk-bugger.ogg, EN-AU_ck1_bugger.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with bugger?

7 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as bugger from its last stressed vowel (/ʌɡəɹ/):

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 bugger

buggers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
buggering participle, present
buggered participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does bugger mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

1
obsoleteA heretic.
2
UKSomeone who commits buggery; a sodomite.
The British Sexual Offences Act of 1967 is a buggers’ charter.
3
CommonwealthderogatoryslangA foolish or worthless person or thing; a despicable person.
He's a silly bugger for losing his keys.
4
CommonwealthslangA situation that is aggravating or causes dismay; a pain.
So you're stuck out in the woop-woop and the next train back is Thursday next week. Well, that's a bit of a bugger.
5
CommonwealthslangSomeone viewed with affection; a chap.
How are you, you old bugger?
6
datedslangA damn, anything at all.
I don't give a bugger how important you think it is.
7
CommonwealthslangSomeone who is very fond of something
I'm a bugger for Welsh cakes.
8
UKUSslangA whippersnapper, a tyke.
What is that little bugger up to now?
9
CommonwealthvulgarOne who sets a bug (surveillance device); one who bugs.

verb

1
CommonwealthvulgarTo have anal sex with, sodomize.
To be buggered sore like a hobo's whore (Attributed to Harry Mclintock's 1920s era Big Rock Candy Mountain)
2
CommonwealthslangvulgarTo break or ruin.
This computer is buggered! Oh no! I've buggered it up.
3
CommonwealthslangvulgarExpressing contemptuous dismissal of the grammatical object.
Bugger Bognor. (Alleged to be the last words of King George V of the United Kingdom in response to a suggestion that he might recover from his illness and visit Bognor Regis.)

interjection

1
CommonwealthIrelandUKslangvulgarAn expression of annoyance or displeasure.
Bugger, I've missed the bus.