bulldozer
/ˈbʊlˌdoʊzɚ/noun, verb
bulldozer is spelled B-U-L-L-D-O-Z-E-R: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 33,636th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bulldozer means “A tractor with caterpillar tracks and an attached blade for pushing earth and building debris for coarse preliminary surface grading, demolishing…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bulldozer is bulldozers.
How many letters and syllables are in bulldozer?
| Letters | 9: B-U-L-L-D-O-Z-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 33,636th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is bulldozer?
Bulldozer appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 33,636th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce bulldozer?
- US /ˈbʊlˌdoʊzɚ/
- UK /ˈbʊlˌdəʊzə/
Bulldozer has 3 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-bulldozer.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of bulldozer
- bulldozers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bulldozering participle, present
- bulldozered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bulldozer mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A tractor with caterpillar tracks and an attached blade for pushing earth and building debris for coarse preliminary surface grading, demolishing building structures, etc.
- 2
One who bulldozes.
- 3
A member of a self-identified group of white US Southerners who colluded to influence outcomes of post-Reconstruction elections by intimidating, coercing and bullying black voters and legislators, including burning down houses and churches, flogging and murdering opponents.
- 4
A bully; an overbearing individual.
verb
- 1
To bulldoze (demolish with a bulldozer).
- 2
To bulldoze (push through forcefully).
They bulldozered through the crowd.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bulldozer in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense tractor:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bulldozer |
| German | Planierraupe, Bulldozer |
| Portuguese | trator (de terraplanagem/terraplenagem), buldózer |
| Spanish | aplanadora, bulldozer, topadora, niveladora, buldócer |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does bulldozer come from?
Originally bull-dozer (1875, Louisiana, US), in the bullier and terrorizer sense; bulldoze + -er. The name for the earthmoving machine came later, figuratively, from that sense.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).