bushel

1 of 2

noun

bush·​el ˈbu̇-shəl 

1

: any of various units of dry capacity see Weights and Measures Table

2

: a container holding a bushel

3

: a large quantity

bushels of money

bushel

2 of 2

verb

busheled; busheling ˈbu̇-sh(ə-)liŋ 

: repair, renovate

busheler

ˈbu̇-sh(ə-)lər 

noun

Synonyms of bushel

Noun

• ton
• dozen
• loads
• plenty
• slew
• quantity
• bunch
• pile
• chunk

Examples of bushel in a Sentence

Noun

picked up a bushel of decorations at the after-Christmas sale

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In the South, nothing says the early days of summer quite like bushels of strawberries ripening in the fields and farmers' markets waiting to be turned into strawberry shortcake. —Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 16 Dec. 2025

Indeed, a crazy tournament thus far led to a bushel of upsets. —Luke Cyphers, Sportico.com, 12 Dec. 2025

The soybean production is expected to yield 104 million bushels, up 3% from 2024. —Anna Kleiber, jsonline.com, 10 Nov. 2025

Four bushels of leeks—Naama is on a leek kick this month and won’t stop scrolling the Times recipe app at all hours of the night, LOL! —Iris Bahr, New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English busshel, from Anglo-French bussel, buschelle, from Old French boisse measure of grain, of Celtic origin; akin to Middle Irish boss breadth of the hand

Verb

probably from German bosseln to do poor work, to patch; akin to Old English bēatan to beat

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1877, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing bushel

• hide one's light under a bushel

Kids Definition

bushel

noun

bush·​el

ˈbu̇sh-əl

1

: any of various units of dry capacity see measure

2

: a container holding a bushel

3

: a large quantity