beluga
/bəˈluːɡə/
"beluga" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“beluga” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #42,023 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #42,023
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 8
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A cetacean, Delphinapterus leucas, found in the Arctic Ocean.
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 | beluga |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /bəˈluːɡə/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #42,023 |
| Misspellings tracked | 8 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “beluga” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for beluga is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /bəˈluːɡə/. Corpus data places it at rank #42,023 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for beluga, with forms such as "bbeluga", "belgua", and "belluga". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Bella", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Russian белу́га (belúga), from бе́лый (bélyj, “white”). In modern standard Russian, белу́га (belúga) denotes the fish Huso huso only, while белу́ха (belúxa) denotes the cetacean. The correct English form is beluga, spelled B-E-L-U-G-A.
Definition
- 1A cetacean, Delphinapterus leucas, found in the Arctic Ocean.
- 2A fish, Huso huso, that is a source of caviar, which is found in the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.
Etymology
Borrowed from Russian белу́га (belúga), from бе́лый (bélyj, “white”). In modern standard Russian, белу́га (belúga) denotes the fish Huso huso only, while белу́ха (belúxa) denotes the cetacean.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: bbeluga,belgua,belluga,beluag,belugga,beulga,bleuga,ebluga
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of beluga - 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.
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 “beluga”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-E-L-U-G-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /bəˈluːɡə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Bella” - see the side-by-side comparison. beluga vs Bella
- 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.