debunk
/dɪˈbʌŋk/verb, noun
debunk is spelled D-E-B-U-N-K: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 42,680th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, debunk means “To discredit, or expose to ridicule the falsehood or the exaggerated claims of something; to refute” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in debunk?
| Letters | 6: D-E-B-U-N-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 42,680th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is debunk?
Debunk appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 42,680th 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 debunk?
- UK /diːˈbʌŋk/
- UK /diːˈbʊŋk/
- US /dɪˈbʌŋk/
Debunk has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-debunk.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with debunk?
8 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as debunk from its last stressed vowel (/ʌŋk/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of debunk
- debunks present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- debunking participle, present
- debunked participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does debunk mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To discredit, or expose to ridicule the falsehood or the exaggerated claims of something; to refute.
The explosion story was thoroughly debunked on National Public Radio in November 1999.
noun
- 1
informalA debunking; the act by which something is debunked.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Debunk in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to discredit or expose the falsehood of something:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | dévoiler, se déconsidérer, mettre en pièces, réduire à néant, jeter l'opprobre sur, se discréditer |
| German | entlarven, diskreditieren, demaskieren, bloßlegen, entschleiern |
| Portuguese | desacreditar |
| Spanish | desacreditar, ridiculizar, hacer añicos, desbaratar, hacer trizas, despedazar |
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 debunk come from?
From de- (“away”) + bunk (“nonsense”) (from bunkum, from Buncombe County) 1923.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).