bulbous

Name: bulbous, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈbʌlbəs/

//ˈbʌlbəs// adj

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“bulbous” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #43,547. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#43,547
frequency rank, English: 4,121
“B” headwords: 10
tracked misspellings: 1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Having the shape of or resembling a bulb, bloated.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bulbous · bulbous · English

bulbous · rank #43,547 · 10 variants · 1 confusable

FREQ-MID #43,547
LEN-LONG 7 letters
VOW-3 3 vowels
CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
VAR-MID 10 variants
BOOK-MID 4,121
PHOTO-FINISH Bunbury

Nearest frequency peer: Bunbury (+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.

breadwinner

56,457
Bridgend

56,456
bulbous

56,454
Bunbury

56,453
butternut

56,452
butting

56,451

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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

bulbous vs bulbs

71% similar

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

Key facts for bulbous
Property	Value
Headword	bulbous
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
IPA	/ˈbʌlbəs/
Letters	7
Frequency rank	#43,547
Misspellings tracked	10
Confusable pairs	1
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “bulbous”

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

#43,547

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Bunbury” (#43,548), “Bridgend” (#43,545), “butternut” (#43,549). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bulbous” is #43,547. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around bulbous (IPA /ˈbʌlbəs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #43,547 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for bulbous, with forms such as "bbulbous", "blubous", and "bublous". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "bulbs", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From bulb + -ous or alteration of Latin bulbosus. The correct English form is bulbous, spelled B-U-L-B-O-U-S.

Definition

1
Having the shape of or resembling a bulb, bloated.
2
Overweight and round in shape.
3
Growing from a bulb or producing bulbs.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

A neon cacophony hung only a few feet above their heads, the popping and buzzing of the lights only occasionally drowned out by the shouts of the barkers, bulbous men whose doughy fat strained at their sweat-stained t-shirts[…]

Etymology

From bulb + -ous or alteration of Latin bulbosus.

This word in other languages

bulboso(Español)bulbeux(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

bbulbous
blubous
bublous
bulbbous
bulbosu
bulbouss
bulbuos
bullbous
bulobus
ublbous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

Edit distance from "bulbous"

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 "bulbous"?

"bulbous" is spelled B-U-L-B-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbʌlbəs/.

What does "bulbous" mean?

As an adjective, "bulbous" means: Having the shape of or resembling a bulb, bloated.

What words are commonly confused with "bulbous"?

"bulbous" is commonly confused with "bulbs". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "bulbous"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bulbous" is /ˈbʌlbəs/. 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 "bulbous"?

From bulb + -ous or alteration of Latin bulbosus. 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 "bulbous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Bunbury#43,548 butting#43,550 Cambria#43,553 bloomer#43,536

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

bloomed10 variants coronal10 variants coupler10 variants alopecia10 variants