bobby

/ˈbɒbi/

//ˈbɒbi// noun

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

"bobby" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bobby” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,922. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,922
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A police officer.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bobby · bobby · English

bobby · rank #4,922 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,922
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH biology

Nearest frequency peer: biology (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “bobby”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “bobby” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

bobby vs boy
60% similar
bobby vs body
60% similar
bobby vs bomb
60% similar

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

Key facts for bobby
PropertyValue
Headwordbobby
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbɒbi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#4,922
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “bobby”

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).bobbylands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “biology” (#4,921), “briefly” (#4,923), “bin” (#4,920). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bobby” is #4,922. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around bobby (IPA /ˈbɒbi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #4,922 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for bobby, with forms such as "bbobby", "bboby", and "bobbyy". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "boy", "body", "bomb", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From the given name of Sir Robert Peel, who established London’s police force. The correct English form is bobby, spelled B-O-B-B-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A police officer.
  2. 2
    A railway signaller.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. If I am wrong, and if Lessingham’s wrong, how do you explain his extraordinary insistence on taking it inside the cab with him, which the bobby describes?
  2. "We are looking at being able to fly [drones] tens of miles from base, which is going to make a huge difference. It is the equivalent of having bobbies on the beat."

Etymology

From the given name of Sir Robert Peel, who established London’s police force.

This word in other languages

yuta(Español)bobby(Français)Bobby(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbobby
  • bboby
  • bobbyy
  • boby
  • bobyb
  • obbby

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bobby - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

bbobby1bboby2bobbyy1boby1bobyb2obbby2
Edit distance from "bobby"

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 "bobby"?
"bobby" is spelled B-O-B-B-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɒbi/.
What does "bobby" mean?
As a noun, "bobby" means: A police officer.
What words are commonly confused with "bobby"?
"bobby" is commonly confused with "boy", "body", "bomb". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bobby"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bobby" is /ˈbɒbi/. 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 "bobby"?
From the given name of Sir Robert Peel, who established London’s police force. 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 "bobby", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

canal#4,924beats#4,919climb#4,929usage#4,908

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

folk6 variantsshed6 variantsrolls6 variantsMills6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list