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bur

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bur¹

  • /bɝ/ US
  • /bɜː/ Australia, UK
  • /bʌr/ Scotland
  • /bøː/ New Zealand
  • /beː/
  • /bɛː/

Sounds like burr, Burr, birr (fern–fir–fur merger), bare, bear (both fair–fur merger) · Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ), -ʌr

Where it comes from

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”).

noun burs · 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. alternative Alternative form of burr (“small piece of material”).

Bur²

Where it comes from

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.

proper noun Burs

  1. A surname.

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Cite this
MLA

"bur." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/bur. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

bur. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/bur

Chicago

"bur." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/bur.

BibTeX
@misc{bur_2026,
  title = {bur},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/bur},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}