busker

/ˈbʌskɚ/

//ˈbʌskɚ// noun

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

The verdict

“busker” is uncommon English (frequency #71,367 among 31,241 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,367
frequency rank, English
31,241
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A person who solicits donations while entertaining the public, often by playing a musical instrument, on a street or in another public area such as a park or marketplace.

Corpus desk

Index EN-busker · busker · English

busker · rank #71,367 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #71,367
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 31,241
  • PHOTO-FINISH buttes

Nearest frequency peer: buttes (+2 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “busker”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “busker” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for busker
PropertyValue
Headwordbusker
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbʌskɚ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#71,367
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “busker” 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). busker lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

busker is uncommon English at frequency #71,367 among 31,241 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbʌskɚ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A person who solicits donations while entertaining the public, often by playing a musical instrument, on a street or in another public area such as a park or marketplace.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for busker, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From busk + -er. The correct English form is busker, spelled B-U-S-K-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who solicits donations while entertaining the public, often by playing a musical instrument, on a street or in another public area such as a park or marketplace.

Etymology

From busk + -er.

This word in other languages

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "busker"?
"busker" is spelled B-U-S-K-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbʌskɚ/.
What does "busker" mean?
As a noun, "busker" means: A person who solicits donations while entertaining the public, often by playing a musical instrument, on a street or in another public area such as a park or marketplace.
How do you pronounce "busker"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "busker" is /ˈbʌskɚ/. 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 "busker"?
From busk + -er. 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "busker", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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