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bursa

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

5 characters

Language

English

word origin

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "bursa", 5-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "bursa" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "bursa" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

bursa is aEnglishnoun. It means: Any of the many small fluid-filled sacs located at the point where a muscle or tendon slides across bone. These sacs serve to reduce friction between the two moving surfaces. Pronounced /ˈbɜːsə/. Often confused with bus and busy.

Key facts for bursa
PropertyValue
Headwordbursa
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbɜːsə/
Letters5
Frequency rank#46,957
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of bursa in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bursa is 5 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbɜːsə/. Corpus data places it at rank #46,957 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 7 documented wrong-spelling variants for bursa, with forms such as "bbursa", "brusa", and "buras". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "bus", "busy", "bush", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Medieval Latin bursa (“purse”), from Ancient Greek βύρσα (búrsa); compare purse and bourse, which are doublets. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is bursa, spelled B-U-R-S-A, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of the many small fluid-filled sacs located at the point where a muscle or tendon slides across bone. These sacs serve to reduce friction between the two moving surfaces.
  2. 2
    A diverticulum on the cloaca of young birds, which serves as a lymphatic organ and as part of the immune system, but which atrophies as the bird ages.
  3. 3
    Any of various pouch-like organs for storing semen prior to copulation in the male or for receiving semen in the female.
  4. 4
    A parament about twelve inches square in which the folded corporal is kept in for reasons of reverence.

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin bursa (“purse”), from Ancient Greek βύρσα (búrsa); compare purse and bourse, which are doublets.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbursa,brusa,buras,burrsa,burssa,busra,ubrsa

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for bursa

Misspelling Variants of "bursa"

bbursa6brusa5buras5burrsa6burssa6busra5ubrsa5
Misspelling Variants of "bursa"

Frequency rank: #46,957 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bursa"?
"bursa" is spelled B-U-R-S-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɜːsə/.
What does "bursa" mean?
As a noun, "bursa" means: Any of the many small fluid-filled sacs located at the point where a muscle or tendon slides across bone. These sacs serve to reduce friction between the two moving surfaces.
What words are commonly confused with "bursa"?
"bursa" is commonly confused with "bus", "busy", "bush". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bursa"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bursa" is /ˈbɜːsə/. 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 "bursa"?
Borrowed from Medieval Latin bursa (“purse”), from Ancient Greek βύρσα (búrsa); compare purse and bourse, which are doublets. 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter B in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.