brooch

/bɹəʊtʃ/

//bɹəʊtʃ// noun

"brooch" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“brooch” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #27,388 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#27,388
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
17
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A piece of ornamental jewellery having a pin allowing it to be fixed to garments worn on the upper body.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

brooch vs brook
67% similar
brooch vs broom
67% similar
brooch vs broth
67% similar

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

Key facts for brooch
PropertyValue
Headwordbrooch
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/bɹəʊtʃ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#27,388
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs17
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “brooch” 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). brooch lands here:

#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 brooch is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /bɹəʊtʃ/. Corpus data places it at rank #27,388 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 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for brooch, with forms such as "bbrooch", "boroch", and "broch". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 17 confusable-pair relationships, "brook", "broom", "broth", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Variant of broach. The correct English form is brooch, spelled B-R-O-O-C-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    A piece of ornamental jewellery having a pin allowing it to be fixed to garments worn on the upper body.
  2. 2
    A painting all of one colour, such as a sepia painting.

Etymology

Variant of broach.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbrooch,boroch,broch,brocoh,broocch,broochh,broohc,brrooch,rbooch

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of brooch - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bbrooch1boroch2broch1brocoh2broocch1broochh1broohc2brrooch1
Edit distance from "brooch"

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 "brooch"?
"brooch" is spelled B-R-O-O-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is /bɹəʊtʃ/.
What does "brooch" mean?
As a noun, "brooch" means: A piece of ornamental jewellery having a pin allowing it to be fixed to garments worn on the upper body.
What words are commonly confused with "brooch"?
"brooch" is commonly confused with "brook", "broom", "broth". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "brooch"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "brooch" is /bɹəʊtʃ/. 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 "brooch"?
Variant of broach. 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 “brooch”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is B-R-O-O-C-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /bɹəʊtʃ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “brook” - see the side-by-side comparison. brooch vs brook
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list