ala
/ˈeɪ.lə/
"ala" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“ala” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #14,261 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #14,261
- frequency rank, English
- 3
- letters
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A wing or winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | ala |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈeɪ.lə/ |
| Letters | 3 |
| Frequency rank | #14,261 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “ala” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for ala is 3 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈeɪ.lə/. Corpus data places it at rank #14,261 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No generated misspelling entries exist for ala in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. 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: Originated from 1730–40, borrowed from Latin āla (“wing”). Doublet of aisle. The correct English form is ala, spelled A-L-A.
Definition
- 1A wing or winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone.
- 2The flattened border of some stems, fruits, and seeds, or one of the two side petals of certain flowers in the pea family.
- 3In ancient Rome, a small room opening into a larger room or courtyard.
Etymology
Originated from 1730–40, borrowed from Latin āla (“wing”). Doublet of aisle.
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
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Using “ala”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-L-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈeɪ.lə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “as” - see the side-by-side comparison. ala vs as
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.