bulla

/bˈulə/

//bˈulə// noun

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

"bulla" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bulla” is uncommon English (frequency #71,361 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,361
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A blister, vesicle, or other thin-walled cavity or lesion, as

Corpus desk

Index EN-bulla · bulla · English

bulla · rank #71,361 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #71,361
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Buehler

Nearest frequency peer: Buehler (-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 “bulla”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bulla
PropertyValue
Headwordbulla
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/bˈulə/
Letters5
Frequency rank#71,361
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “bulla” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).bullafalls 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: “Buehler” (#71,360), “bullfighter” (#71,362), “broody” (#71,358). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bulla” is #71,361. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

bulla is uncommon English at frequency #71,361 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /bˈulə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for bulla, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin bulla (“bubble”). Doublet of bill and bull (“papal bull; bubble”). The correct English form is bulla, spelled B-U-L-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A blister, vesicle, or other thin-walled cavity or lesion, as
  2. 2
    A blister, vesicle, or other thin-walled cavity or lesion, as:
  3. 3
    A clay envelope or hollow ball, typically with seal impressions or writing on its outside indicating its contents.
  4. 4
    In ancient Rome, a kind of amulet or boss.
  5. 5
    A handwritten document from the papal chancellery.
  6. 6
    Any of several hollow structures as features of bones.
  7. 7
    Any of several hollow structures as features of bones.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. auditory bulla; ethmoid bulla

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin bulla (“bubble”). Doublet of bill and bull (“papal bull; bubble”).

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 "bulla"?
"bulla" is spelled B-U-L-L-A. The IPA pronunciation is /bˈulə/.
What does "bulla" mean?
As a noun, "bulla" means: A blister, vesicle, or other thin-walled cavity or lesion, as
How do you pronounce "bulla"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bulla" is /bˈulə/. 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 "bulla"?
Borrowed from Latin bulla (“bubble”). Doublet of bill and bull (“papal bull; bubble”). 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 "bulla", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

corne#71,420creat#71,424aurum#71,297Dakin#71,431

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list