billabong

/ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ/

//ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ// noun

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

"billabong" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“billabong” is uncommon English (frequency #64,215 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,215
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An anabranch, backwater or oxbow lake that is temporarily cut off from the main river, especially one that is only filled with water during the rainy season and can sometimes dry up completely.

Corpus desk

Index EN-billabong · billabong · English

billabong · rank #64,215 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,215
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Bihari

Nearest frequency peer: Bihari (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “billabong”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “billabong” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for billabong
PropertyValue
Headwordbillabong
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ/
Letters9
Frequency rank#64,215
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “billabong” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).billabongfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Bihari” (#64,214), “Bhabhi” (#64,213), “biostatistics” (#64,217). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “billabong” is #64,215. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

billabong is uncommon English at frequency #64,215 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An anabranch, backwater or oxbow lake that is temporarily cut off from the main river, especially one that is only filled with water during the rainy season and can sometimes dry up completely.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for billabong in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Wiradjuri bilabang, likely a compound from Wiradjuri bila (“river”) and Wiradjuri bong or Wiradjuri bung (“dead”). The correct English form is billabong, spelled B-I-L-L-A-B-O-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    An anabranch, backwater or oxbow lake that is temporarily cut off from the main river, especially one that is only filled with water during the rainy season and can sometimes dry up completely.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Oh there once was a swagman camped in the billabong, Under the shade of a coolibah tree, And he sang as he looked at the old billy boiling, 'Who'll come a'waltzing Matilda, with me.'

Etymology

From Wiradjuri bilabang, likely a compound from Wiradjuri bila (“river”) and Wiradjuri bong or Wiradjuri bung (“dead”).

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 "billabong"?
"billabong" is spelled B-I-L-L-A-B-O-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ/.
What does "billabong" mean?
As a noun, "billabong" means: An anabranch, backwater or oxbow lake that is temporarily cut off from the main river, especially one that is only filled with water during the rainy season and can sometimes dry up completely.
How do you pronounce "billabong"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "billabong" is /ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ/. 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 "billabong"?
From Wiradjuri bilabang, likely a compound from Wiradjuri bila (“river”) and Wiradjuri bong or Wiradjuri bung (“dead”). 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 "billabong", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Bergstrom#64,211baptizing#64,198brookside#64,232badgering#64,196

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list