Cola or kola?
cola is a noun meaning “The kola plant, genus Cola, famous for its nut, or one of these nuts”; kola is a noun meaning “A tree, genus Cola, bearing large brown seeds ("nuts") that are the source of…”. In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) cola is about 16 times as common as kola.
What is the difference between cola and kola?
| cola | kola | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun | noun |
| Meaning | The kola plant, genus Cola, famous for its nut, or one of these nuts A beverage or a drink made with kola nut flavoring, caramel and carbonated water A cluster of buds on a cannabis plant | A tree, genus Cola, bearing large brown seeds ("nuts") that are the source of cola extract A nut of this tree |
| Example | none recorded | none recorded |
| Forms | colas | kolas |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkəʊ.lə/ /ˈkoʊlə/ | not recorded |
| In writing | 5.5 times per million words | about once in every 3 million words |
Sources: cola and kola in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of cola and kola
cola
- 1
The kola plant, genus Cola, famous for its nut, or one of these nuts
- 2
A cluster of buds on a cannabis plant
- 3
Acronym of cost of living adjustment
- 4
A beverage or a drink made with kola nut flavoring, caramel and carbonated water
kola
- 1
A tree, genus Cola, bearing large brown seeds ("nuts") that are the source of cola extract
- 2
A nut of this tree
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, cola or kola?
cola appears 5.5 times per million words; kola about once in every 3 million words.
cola 5.5 times per million wordskola about once in every 3 million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).