Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

bunburying

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables
bun-bury-ing
IPA
18
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Avoiding one's duties and responsibilities by claiming to have appointments to see a fictitious person.

Humorous; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

Word Breakdown

Usage

Frequently Paired Words

Questions

What does bunburying mean?
Avoiding one's duties and responsibilities by claiming to have appointments to see a fictitious person.
Where does bunburying come from?
From Bunbury + -ing, coined by Oscar Wilde in The Importance of Being Earnest (1895) after Bunbury, the fictitious disabled friend of the character Algernon whose supposed illness is used as an excuse to avoid social engagements.

How to pronounce bunburying

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “bunburying”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “bunburying”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “bunburying” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.