brick

/bɹɪk/

//bɹɪk// noun

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

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

The verdict

“brick” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,658. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,658
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A hardened rectangular block of mud, clay etc., used for building.

Corpus desk

Index EN-brick · brick · English

brick · rank #4,658 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,658
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH boundaries

Nearest frequency peer: boundaries (-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 “brick”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “brick” 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).

brick vs buck
60% similar
brick vs Brit
40% similar
brick vs brig
60% similar

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

Key facts for brick
PropertyValue
Headwordbrick
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/bɹɪk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#4,658
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “brick”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).bricklands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “boundaries” (#4,657), “Brooklyn” (#4,659), “boats” (#4,656). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “brick” is #4,658. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around brick (IPA /bɹɪk/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #4,658 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 15 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for brick, with forms such as "bbrick", "birck", and "brcik". 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, "buck", "Brit", "brig", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Middle English brik, bryke, bricke, from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch bricke ("cracked or broken brick; tile-stone"; modern Dutch brik), ultimately related to Proto-West Germanic *brekan (“to break”), whence also Old French briche and French… The correct English form is brick, spelled B-R-I-C-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    A hardened rectangular block of mud, clay etc., used for building.
  2. 2
    Such hardened mud, clay, etc. considered collectively, as a building material.
  3. 3
    Something shaped like a brick.
  4. 4
    The colour brick red.
  5. 5
    A helpful and reliable person.
  6. 6
    A shot which misses, particularly one which bounces directly out of the basket because of a too-flat trajectory, as if the ball were a heavier object.
  7. 7
    A power brick; an external power supply consisting of a small box with an integral male plug and an attached cord terminating in another plug.
  8. 8
    An electronic device, especially a heavy box-shaped one, that has become non-functional or obsolete.
  9. 9
    A projectile.
  10. 10
    A carton of 500 rimfire cartridges, which forms the approximate size and shape of a brick.
  11. 11
    A community card (usually the turn or the river) which does not improve a player's hand.
  12. 12
    A card in a player's hand that is currently unplayable.
  13. 13
    A kilogram of cocaine.
  14. 14
    A trans woman who does not pass.
  15. 15
    A reel or short video.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. This wall is made of bricks.
  2. This house is made of brick.

Etymology

From Late Middle English brik, bryke, bricke, from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch bricke ("cracked or broken brick; tile-stone"; modern Dutch brik), ultimately related to Proto-West Germanic *brekan (“to break”), whence also Old French briche and French brique (“brick”). Compare also German Low German Brickje (“small board, tray”). Related to break. The social media slang sense derives from memes about building up one's feed “brick by brick”, analogizing bricks with reels that inform the algorithm.

This word in other languages

ladrillo(Español)brique(Français)Backstein(Deutsch)tijolo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbrick
  • birck
  • brcik
  • bricck
  • brickk
  • brikc
  • brrick
  • rbick

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

bbrick1birck2brcik2bricck1brickk1brikc2brrick1rbick2
Edit distance from "brick"

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 "brick"?
"brick" is spelled B-R-I-C-K. The IPA pronunciation is /bɹɪk/.
What does "brick" mean?
As a noun, "brick" means: A hardened rectangular block of mud, clay etc., used for building.
What words are commonly confused with "brick"?
"brick" is commonly confused with "buck", "Brit", "brig". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "brick"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "brick" is /bɹɪk/. 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 "brick"?
From Late Middle English brik, bryke, bricke, from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch bricke ("cracked or broken brick; tile-stone"; modern Dutch brik), ultimately related to Proto-West Germanic *brekan (“to break”), whence also Old French briche ... 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 "brick", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

boats#4,656Danny#4,663alpha#4,651aimed#4,650

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

garage8 variantswaited8 variantsstays8 variantsruined8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list