chama

/ˈtʃɑːmə/

//ˈtʃɑːmə// noun

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

The verdict

“chama” is uncommon English (frequency #69,724 among 43,570 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#69,724
frequency rank, English
43,570
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any of several types of informal cooperative society.

Key facts for chama
PropertyValue
Headwordchama
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtʃɑːmə/
Letters5
Frequency rank#69,724
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “chama” 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). chama lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

chama is uncommon English at frequency #69,724 among 43,570 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtʃɑːmə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for chama, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Swahili chama (“organisation, society”). The correct English form is chama, spelled C-H-A-M-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of several types of informal cooperative society.
  2. 2
    Any of several types of informal cooperative society.

Etymology

From Swahili chama (“organisation, society”).

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 "chama"?
"chama" is spelled C-H-A-M-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtʃɑːmə/.
What does "chama" mean?
As a noun, "chama" means: Any of several types of informal cooperative society.
How do you pronounce "chama"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chama" is /ˈtʃɑːmə/. 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 "chama"?
From Swahili chama (“organisation, society”). 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 “chama”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is C-H-A-M-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈtʃɑːmə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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