bunkum
/ˈbʌŋkəm/
"bunkum" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“bunkum” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 6
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Senseless talk; nonsense; a piece of nonsense.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | bunkum |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈbʌŋkəm/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “bunkum” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for bunkum is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbʌŋkəm/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No misspelling variants are generated for bunkum in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From buncombe, from “speaking to (or for) Buncombe County, North Carolina”, a county in North Carolina named for Edward Buncombe. In 1820, Felix Walker, who represented the county in the U.S. House of Representatives, rose to address the question of admitti… The correct English form is bunkum, spelled B-U-N-K-U-M.
Definition
- 1Senseless talk; nonsense; a piece of nonsense.
- 2Bombastic political posturing or oratorical display designed only for show or public applause.
Etymology
From buncombe, from “speaking to (or for) Buncombe County, North Carolina”, a county in North Carolina named for Edward Buncombe. In 1820, Felix Walker, who represented the county in the U.S. House of Representatives, rose to address the question of admitting Missouri as a free or slave state, his first attempt to speak on the subject after nearly a month of solid debate, right before the vote was to be called. To the exasperation of colleagues, he began a long and wearisome speech, explaining that he was speaking not to Congress but "to Buncombe." He was ultimately shouted down by his colleagues, though his speech was published in a Washington paper and his persistence made "buncombe" (later respelled "bunkum") a synonym for meaningless political claptrap and later for any kind of nonsense, at first only in the jargon of Washington and then in common usage.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "bunkum"?
What does "bunkum" mean?
How do you pronounce "bunkum"?
What is the origin of the word "bunkum"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “bunkum”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-U-N-K-U-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈbʌŋkəm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.