blaze

Name: blaze, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/bleɪz/

//bleɪz// noun

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“blaze” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #11,346 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#11,346
frequency rank, English: 5
letters: 7
tracked misspellings: 20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A fire, especially a fast-burning fire producing a lot of flames and light.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

blaze vs BLE

0% similar

blaze vs blue

60% similar

blaze vs brave

60% similar

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

Key facts for blaze
Property	Value
Headword	blaze
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/bleɪz/
Letters	5
Frequency rank	#11,346
Misspellings tracked	7
Confusable pairs	20
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “blaze” 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). blaze lands here:

#11,346

#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 blaze is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /bleɪz/. Corpus data places it at rank #11,346 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 5 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 blaze, with forms such as "balze", "bblaze", and "blaez". 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, "BLE", "blue", "brave", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English blase, from Old English blæse, blase (“firebrand, torch, lamp, flame”), from Proto-West Germanic *blasā, from Proto-Germanic *blasǭ (“torch”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- (“to shine, be white”). Cognate with Low German blas (“burning… The correct English form is blaze, spelled B-L-A-Z-E.

Definition

1
A fire, especially a fast-burning fire producing a lot of flames and light.
2
Intense, direct light accompanied with heat.
3
A high-visibility orange colour, typically used in warning signs and hunters' clothing.
4
A bursting out, or active display of any quality.
5
A hand consisting of five face cards.

Etymology

From Middle English blase, from Old English blæse, blase (“firebrand, torch, lamp, flame”), from Proto-West Germanic *blasā, from Proto-Germanic *blasǭ (“torch”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- (“to shine, be white”). Cognate with Low German blas (“burning candle, torch, fire”), Middle High German blas (“candle, torch, flame”).

This word in other languages

llama(Español)feu(Français)Flammenmeer(Deutsch)labareda(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: balze,bblaze,blaez,blazze,bllaze,blzae,lbaze

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of blaze - 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.

Edit distance from "blaze"

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 "blaze"?

"blaze" is spelled B-L-A-Z-E. The IPA pronunciation is /bleɪz/.

What does "blaze" mean?

As a noun, "blaze" means: A fire, especially a fast-burning fire producing a lot of flames and light.

What words are commonly confused with "blaze"?

"blaze" is commonly confused with "BLE", "blue", "brave". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "blaze"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "blaze" is /bleɪz/. 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 "blaze"?

From Middle English blase, from Old English blæse, blase (“firebrand, torch, lamp, flame”), from Proto-West Germanic *blasā, from Proto-Germanic *blasǭ (“torch”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰel- (“to shine, be white”). Cognate with Low German blas... 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 “blaze”

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

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