broke

/bɹəʊk/

//bɹəʊk// verb

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

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

The verdict

“broke” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,477. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,477
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - simple past of break

Corpus desk

Index EN-broke · broke · English

broke · rank #1,477 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,477
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH attempt

Nearest frequency peer: attempt (-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 “broke”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “broke” 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).

broke vs bros
60% similar
broke vs brow
60% similar
broke vs Brom
40% similar

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

Key facts for broke
PropertyValue
Headwordbroke
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/bɹəʊk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,477
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “broke”

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).brokelands 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 “attempt” (#1,476), “channel” (#1,478), “appear” (#1,475). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “broke” is #1,477. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around broke (IPA /bɹəʊk/), averb. Corpus frequency is #1,477 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for broke, with forms such as "bbroke", "borke", and "brkoe". 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, "bros", "brow", "Brom", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Ablauted form of break. The correct English form is broke, spelled B-R-O-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    simple past of break
  2. 2
    past participle of break

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Accordingly, he came with a mob the next day; and after they had broke all the windows...
  2. The horse was the grey stallion he aye rode, the very beast he had ridden for many a wager with the wild lads of the Cross Keys. No man but himself durst back it, and it had lamed many a hostler lad and broke two necks in its day.

Etymology

Ablauted form of break.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbroke
  • borke
  • brkoe
  • broek
  • brokke
  • brroke
  • rboke

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

bbroke1borke2brkoe2broek2brokke1brroke1rboke2
Edit distance from "broke"

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 "broke"?
"broke" is spelled B-R-O-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is /bɹəʊk/.
What does "broke" mean?
As a verb, "broke" means: simple past of break
What words are commonly confused with "broke"?
"broke" is commonly confused with "bros", "brow", "Brom". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "broke"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "broke" is /bɹəʊk/. 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 "broke"?
Ablauted form of break. 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 "broke", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

stars#1,471glass#1,485queen#1,466Obama#1,463

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

accept7 variantsprior7 variantsroyal7 variantsserve7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list