bullet

/ˈbʊl.ɪt/

//ˈbʊl.ɪt// noun

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

"bullet" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bullet” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #4,741 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#4,741
frequency rank, English
6
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A projectile, usually of metal, shot from a gun at high speed.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

bullet vs bulls
67% similar
bullet vs bully
67% similar
bullet vs butler
67% similar

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

Key facts for bullet
PropertyValue
Headwordbullet
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbʊl.ɪt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#4,741
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bullet” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bullet is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbʊl.ɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,741 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 20 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for bullet, with forms such as "bbullet", "blulet", and "bulelt". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "bulls", "bully", "butler", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English bullet (“an official tag or badge of registration or identification”), from Old French bullete, diminutive of boule (“ball”). Later influenced by Middle French boulette and French boulet. The correct English form is bullet, spelled B-U-L-L-E-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A projectile, usually of metal, shot from a gun at high speed.
  2. 2
    An entire round of unfired ammunition for a firearm, including the projectile, the cartridge casing, the propellant charge, etc.
  3. 3
    Ammunition for a sling or slingshot which has been manufactured for such use.
  4. 4
    A printed symbol in the form of a solid circle ⟨•⟩, often used to mark items in a list.
  5. 5
    A large scheduled repayment of the principal of a loan; a balloon payment.
  6. 6
    A rejection letter, as for employment, admission to a school or a competition.
  7. 7
    One year of prison time.
  8. 8
    An ace (the playing card).
  9. 9
    Anything that is projected extremely fast.
  10. 10
    Very fast (speedy).
  11. 11
    Ellipsis of bullet chess.
  12. 12
    A plumb or sinker.
  13. 13
    The heavy projectile thrown in a game of road bowling.
  14. 14
    A roughly bullet-shaped sweet consisting of a cylinder of liquorice covered in chocolate.
  15. 15
    A small ball.
  16. 16
    A cannonball.
  17. 17
    The fetlock of a horse.
  18. 18
    The best workout time at a track on a given day at a specific distance, traditionally marked by a printer's bullet.
  19. 19
    A notation used on pop music charts to indicate that a song is climbing in the rankings.
  20. 20
    Ellipsis of bullet vibrator.

Etymology

From Middle English bullet (“an official tag or badge of registration or identification”), from Old French bullete, diminutive of boule (“ball”). Later influenced by Middle French boulette and French boulet.

This word in other languages

bala(Español)balle(Français)Kugel(Deutsch)bala(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbullet,blulet,bulelt,bulet,bullett,bullte,ubllet

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bullet - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bbullet1blulet2bulelt2bulet1bullett1bullte2ubllet2
Edit distance from "bullet"

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 "bullet"?
"bullet" is spelled B-U-L-L-E-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbʊl.ɪt/.
What does "bullet" mean?
As a noun, "bullet" means: A projectile, usually of metal, shot from a gun at high speed.
What words are commonly confused with "bullet"?
"bullet" is commonly confused with "bulls", "bully", "butler". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bullet"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bullet" is /ˈbʊl.ɪt/. 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 "bullet"?
From Middle English bullet (“an official tag or badge of registration or identification”), from Old French bullete, diminutive of boule (“ball”). Later influenced by Middle French boulette and French boulet. 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.

Using “bullet”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is B-U-L-L-E-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈbʊl.ɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “bulls” - see the side-by-side comparison. bullet vs bulls
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list