bail

/beɪl/

//beɪl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“bail” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #6,988 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#6,988
frequency rank, English
4
letters
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Security, usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person's appearance for trial.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

bail vs bi
50% similar
bail vs BL
0% similar
bail vs big
50% similar

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

Key facts for bail
PropertyValue
Headwordbail
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/beɪl/
Letters4
Frequency rank#6,988
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bail” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bail is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /beɪl/. Corpus data places it at rank #6,988 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for bail, with forms such as "abil", "baill", and "bbail". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "bi", "BL", "big", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English baille, from the Old French verb bailler (“to deliver or hand over”) and noun bail (“lease”), from Latin bāiulāre (“carry or bear”), from baiulus (“porter; steward”) (English: bailiff). The correct English form is bail, spelled B-A-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Security, usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person's appearance for trial.
  2. 2
    Release from imprisonment on payment of such money.
  3. 3
    The person providing such payment.
  4. 4
    A bucket or scoop used for removing water from a boat etc.
  5. 5
    A person who bails water out of a boat.
  6. 6
    Custody; keeping.

Etymology

From Middle English baille, from the Old French verb bailler (“to deliver or hand over”) and noun bail (“lease”), from Latin bāiulāre (“carry or bear”), from baiulus (“porter; steward”) (English: bailiff).

This word in other languages

fianza(Español)caution(Français)Kaution(Deutsch)fiança(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: abil,baill,bbail,bial

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bail - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

abil2baill1bbail1bial2
Edit distance from "bail"

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 "bail"?
"bail" is spelled B-A-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is /beɪl/.
What does "bail" mean?
As a noun, "bail" means: Security, usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person's appearance for trial.
What words are commonly confused with "bail"?
"bail" is commonly confused with "bi", "BL", "big". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bail"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bail" is /beɪl/. 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 "bail"?
From Middle English baille, from the Old French verb bailler (“to deliver or hand over”) and noun bail (“lease”), from Latin bāiulāre (“carry or bear”), from baiulus (“porter; steward”) (English: bailiff). 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.

Using “bail”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is B-A-I-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /beɪl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “bi” - see the side-by-side comparison. bail vs bi
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list