superbug
noun
superbug is spelled S-U-P-E-R-B-U-G: 8 letters. It appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 93,703rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, superbug means “A strain of bacteria that is resistant to many antibiotics (e.g., MDR, XDR)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of superbug is superbugs.
How many letters and syllables are in superbug?
| Letters | 8: S-U-P-E-R-B-U-G |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 10 million words; the 93,703rd 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 superbug?
Superbug appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 93,703rd 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 superbug?
- US
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Flame,_not_lame-superbug.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of superbug
- superbugs plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does superbug mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
informalA strain of bacteria that is resistant to many antibiotics (e.g., MDR, XDR).
- 2
informalAny pathogen resistant to many, even all, of the biocides or other agents used to treat similar pathogens.
- 3
USAn invasive insect, Bemisia tabaci, that is a major pest of vegetable crops, both directly and as a virus vector.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Superbug in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense a strain of bacteria that is resistant to many antibiotics:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | superbactérie |
| German | Killerkeime, Super-Erreger |
| Spanish | superbacteria |
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 superbug come from?
From super- + bug.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).