alba

/ˈæl.bə/

//ˈæl.bə// noun

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

"alba" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“alba” has 5 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,753. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,753
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A type of lyrical poetry, traditionally Provençal, about lovers who must part at dawn.

Corpus desk

Index EN-alba · alba · English

alba · rank #18,753 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,753
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH airbus

Nearest frequency peer: airbus (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “alba”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “alba” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

alba vs all
50% similar
alba vs Ali
25% similar
alba vs ana
50% similar

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

Key facts for alba
PropertyValue
Headwordalba
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæl.bə/
Letters4
Frequency rank#18,753
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “alba”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “airbus” (#18,752), “alteration” (#18,754), “agility” (#18,751). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “alba” is #18,753. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 5 spelling variants around alba (IPA /ˈæl.bə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #18,753 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A type of lyrical poetry, traditionally Provençal, about lovers who must part at dawn.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for alba, with forms such as "abla", "alab", and "albba". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "all", "Ali", "ana", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in 1821; borrowed from Occitan alba, ultimately from Latin albus (“white”); compare Spanish alba (“dawn”). The correct English form is alba, spelled A-L-B-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A type of lyrical poetry, traditionally Provençal, about lovers who must part at dawn.

Etymology

First attested in 1821; borrowed from Occitan alba, ultimately from Latin albus (“white”); compare Spanish alba (“dawn”).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • abla
  • alab
  • albba
  • allba
  • laba

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of alba - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

abla2alab2albba1allba1laba2
Edit distance from "alba"

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 "alba"?
"alba" is spelled A-L-B-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæl.bə/.
What does "alba" mean?
As a noun, "alba" means: A type of lyrical poetry, traditionally Provençal, about lovers who must part at dawn.
What words are commonly confused with "alba"?
"alba" is commonly confused with "all", "Ali", "ana". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "alba"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alba" is /ˈæl.bə/. 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 "alba"?
First attested in 1821; borrowed from Occitan alba, ultimately from Latin albus (“white”); compare Spanish alba (“dawn”). 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 "alba", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

anon#18,756ante#18,757BDSM#18,763wick#18,737

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (5 here; floor ≥5).

viva5 variantsCali5 variantscarb5 variantstoad5 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list