bimbo
/ˈbɪmbəʊ/
"bimbo" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“bimbo” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #33,952 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #33,952
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 13
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A physically attractive person, typically a woman or otherwise feminine in appearance, who lacks intelligence.
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 | bimbo |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈbɪmbəʊ/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #33,952 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 13 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “bimbo” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for bimbo is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbɪmbəʊ/. Corpus data places it at rank #33,952 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 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for bimbo, with forms such as "bbimbo", "bibmo", and "bimbbo". 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 13 confusable-pair relationships, "bio", "bomb", "bobo", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Italian bimbo (“a child, a male baby”), variant of bambino (“child”). Originated in Italian American theater, attested 1919, as “stupid, inconsequential man”, by 1920 developed sense of “floozie, attractive and stupid woman”. Popularized in 1920s by Ja… The correct English form is bimbo, spelled B-I-M-B-O.
Definition
- 1A physically attractive person, typically a woman or otherwise feminine in appearance, who lacks intelligence.
- 2A stupid or foolish person.
Etymology
From Italian bimbo (“a child, a male baby”), variant of bambino (“child”). Originated in Italian American theater, attested 1919, as “stupid, inconsequential man”, by 1920 developed sense of “floozie, attractive and stupid woman”. Popularized in 1920s by Jack Conway of entertainment magazine Variety, who also popularized baloney (“nonsense”) and palooka (“large stupid man”). Revived in popularity in 1980s US political sex scandals.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: bbimbo,bibmo,bimbbo,bimmbo,bimob,bmibo,ibmbo
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bimbo - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "bimbo"?
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Using “bimbo”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-I-M-B-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈbɪmbəʊ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “bio” - see the side-by-side comparison. bimbo vs bio
- 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.