buggery

/ˈbʌɡəɹi/

//ˈbʌɡəɹi// noun

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

The verdict

“buggery” is uncommon English (frequency #74,791 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#74,791
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Anal sex.

Corpus desk

Index EN-buggery · buggery · English

buggery · rank #74,791 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #74,791
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Broner

Nearest frequency peer: Broner (-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 “buggery”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for buggery
PropertyValue
Headwordbuggery
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbʌɡəɹi/
Letters7
Frequency rank#74,791
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “buggery” 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).buggeryfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Broner” (#74,790), “briny” (#74,789), “BRD” (#74,786). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “buggery” is #74,791. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

buggery is uncommon English at frequency #74,791 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbʌɡəɹi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for buggery, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From bugger + -y (nominal suffix). The correct English form is buggery, spelled B-U-G-G-E-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Anal sex.
  2. 2
    Any sexual act deemed against nature, such as homosexuality, bestiality or necrophilia.
  3. 3
    A broken or damaged condition.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Whosoever shall be convicted of the abominable crime of buggery […] shall be liable at the discretion of the court to be kept in penal servitude for life or for any term not less than ten years.
  2. Whosoever shall be convicted of the abominable Crime of Buggery, committed either with Mankind or with any Animal, shall be liable, at the Discretion of the Court, to be kept in Penal Servitude for Life or for any Term not less than Ten Years.

Etymology

From bugger + -y (nominal suffix).

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 "buggery"?
"buggery" is spelled B-U-G-G-E-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbʌɡəɹi/.
What does "buggery" mean?
As a noun, "buggery" means: Anal sex.
How do you pronounce "buggery"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "buggery" is /ˈbʌɡəɹi/. 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 "buggery"?
From bugger + -y (nominal suffix). 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 "buggery", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list