bur

B3U1R1
US/bɝ/Australia, UK/bɜː/Scotland/bʌr/New Zealand/bøː/

noun

A rough, prickly husk around the seeds or fruit of some plants.

Similar
burr
OriginMiddle English burre ← Old English byrst →
CommonScrabble 5
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

bur1

nounbur (plural burs)

plural burs · alternative burr

  1. A rough, prickly husk around the seeds or fruit of some plants.
  2. Any of several plants having such husks.
  3. A rotary cutting implement having a selection of variously shaped heads.
  4. alternativeAlternative form of burr (“small piece of material”).

Bur2

proper nounBur (plural Burs)

plural Burs

  1. A surname.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounseed vessel having hooks or prickles

Similar
burr
Broader
pericarpseed vessel

nounsmall bit used in dentistry or surgery

Similar
burr
Broader
bit

verbremove the burrs from

Similar
burr
Broader
removetaketake away
Also see
burr

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

bur · noun

  1. Old Englishbyrst“bristle”
  2. Middle Englishburre
  3. Englishbur

From Middle English burre, of unknown origin but probably from North Germanic (Scandinavian) source or from Old English byrst (“bristle”). See also burr. Compare English bristle, Danish burre (“bur, burdock”), Norwegian borre, Swedish borre, and Old Norse burst (“bristle”).

More words from Middle English, Old English

Full word history & related roots →

Bur · proper noun

  1. SlovakBúr
  2. Low GermanBur“peasant, farmer”
  3. Alemannic GermanBur“peasant, farmer”
  4. FrenchBur
  5. EnglishBur

Three possible origins: * Borrowed from French Bur, probably a short form of an ancient Germanic personal name. * Borrowed from Alemannic German Bur (“peasant, farmer”) and Low German Bur (“peasant, farmer”). * Borrowed from Slovak Búr, a surname of unexplained origin.

More words from French, Alemannic German, Low German

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with bur

yourwereherpermatureensurevoyeurreferoccurmirrorsircellularerpreferintercureurentrepreneurinsurestirerrcurobscureKerr
All rhymes →

Sounds the same

burrBurrbirr (fern–fir–fur merger)barebear (both fair–fur merger)

Anagrams

rubbru
Cite this entry
APA

bur. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bur

MLA

“bur.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bur. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bur,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bur.

Source: bur on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.