bulrush
bul·rush/ˈbʊlɹʌʃ/noun
bulrush is spelled B-U-L-R-U-S-H: 7 letters and 2 syllables (bul·rush). It appears about once in every 22 million words in written English, the 143,405th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bulrush means “A plant referred to in the story of Moses as growing along the banks of the Nile, which is believed to be the papyrus (Cyperus papyrus)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bulrush is bulrushes.
How many letters and syllables are in bulrush?
| Letters | 7: B-U-L-R-U-S-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: bul·rush |
| In writing | about once in every 22 million words; the 143,405th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is bulrush?
Bulrush appears about once in every 22 million words in written English, the 143,405th 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 bulrush?
- /ˈbʊlɹʌʃ/
Bulrush has 2 syllables, split bul·rush in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-bulrush.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of bulrush
- bulrushes plural
- bullrush
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bulrush mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A plant referred to in the story of Moses as growing along the banks of the Nile, which is believed to be the papyrus (Cyperus papyrus).
- 2
Any of various tall, narrow-leaved plants growing near water, especially cattail or reedmace, in the genus Typha.
- 3
Sedges in the genera Bolboschoenus or Schoenoplectus (formerly considered Scirpus), having clusters of spikelets.
- 4
AustraliaAny of various reed-like plants growing near water, especially Typha domingensis and Typha orientalis; cumbungi, wonga.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bulrush in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense any of several wetland plants:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | scirpe, jonc |
| German | Simse |
| Portuguese | junco, taboa |
| Spanish | espadaña, gladio, anea, enea, boga, totora |
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 bulrush come from?
From Middle English bulrish, perhaps from bule (“bull”) (in the sense of "large") + rish (“rush”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).