ake

/eɪk/

//eɪk// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"ake" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ake” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #46,292) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#46,292
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Obsolete spelling of ache.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ake · ake · English

ake · rank #46,292 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #46,292
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH airspeed

Nearest frequency peer: airspeed (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbours of confusable “ake”

Peers at similar corpus weight, separate from look-alike pairs below

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “ake” against nearest ranked English headwords, not a reprint of the confusable-pair desk.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

ake vs as
33% similar
ake vs at
33% similar
ake vs an
33% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for ake
PropertyValue
Headwordake
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/eɪk/
Letters3
Frequency rank#46,292
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “ake”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).akelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “airspeed” (#46,291), “AGL” (#46,290), “Agarwal” (#46,289). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “ake” is #46,292. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for ake is neighbouring look-alikes ("as", "at", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /eɪk/. Frequency #46,292 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Gloss: "Obsolete spelling of ache.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for ake, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "as", "at", "an", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English aken, from Old English acan (“to ache”), from Proto-West Germanic *akan, from Proto-Germanic *akaną (“to ache”). More at ache. The correct English form is ake, spelled A-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Obsolete spelling of ache.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how ake appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. ... for let our finger ake, / And it endues our other heathfull members — Othello (Quarto 1), Shakespeare, 1622
  2. And that thing made of ſound and ſhovv / VVhich mortals have miſnamed A Beau, / (But in the language of the ſky / Is call'd a tvvolegg'd butterfly) / VVill make your very heartſtrings ake / VVith loud and everlaſting clack, […]

Etymology

From Middle English aken, from Old English acan (“to ache”), from Proto-West Germanic *akan, from Proto-Germanic *akaną (“to ache”). More at ache.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "ake"?
"ake" is spelled A-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is /eɪk/.
What does "ake" mean?
As a verb, "ake" means: Obsolete spelling of ache.
What words are commonly confused with "ake"?
"ake" is commonly confused with "as", "at", "an". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "ake"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ake" is /eɪk/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "ake"?
From Middle English aken, from Old English acan (“to ache”), from Proto-West Germanic *akan, from Proto-Germanic *akaną (“to ache”). More at ache. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "ake", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

AGL#46,290arb#46,311ARN#46,314wim#46,269

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list