Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

burgeon

/ˈbɝː.d͡ʒən/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.65 in modern English

Syllables
bur-geon
IPA
/ˈbɝː.d͡ʒən/
10
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A bud, sprout, or shoot.

Obsolete

verb

To grow or expand.

Intransitive verb

verb

To swell to the point of bursting.

Intransitive verb

verb

Of plants, to bloom, bud.

Archaic; Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English burjon, burjoun (“shoot, bud”), from Anglo-Norman burjun, burgeon, burgon (compare Old French burjon (“a bud”)), from Old Frankish *burjō (“sprout, offshoot, descendant”), from Proto-Germanic *burjô (“sprout, descendant, offshoot”), from Proto-Germanic *burjaną (“to raise up”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer-. Compare Old High German burjan, burien, burren (“to push up, raise”), Old English byrian (“to come up, occur”), Old English byre (“child, son, descendant”), Albanian buron (“sprout, spring, gush out”). More at bear. Alternate etymology derives Old French burjon (“bud”) from Vulgar Latin *burrionem, accusative of *burrio, from Late Latin burra (“wool, fluff”) (presumably from the down covering certain buds).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: burjon,burjoun, burjun, *burjō, *burjô, *burjaną, *bʰer-

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈbɝː.d͡ʒən/
  • British English: /ˈbɜː.d͡ʒən/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Synonyms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce burgeon?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈbɝː.d͡ʒən/.
What does burgeon mean?
A bud, sprout, or shoot.
Where does burgeon come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce burgeon

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