chimp
/t͡ʃɪmp/
"chimp" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“chimp” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #30,731 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #30,731
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 8
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Clipping of chimpanzee.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | chimp |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /t͡ʃɪmp/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #30,731 |
| Misspellings tracked | 8 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “chimp” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for chimp is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /t͡ʃɪmp/. Corpus data places it at rank #30,731 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 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for chimp, with forms such as "cchimp", "chhimp", and "chimmp". 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, "CHP", "CIP", "chip", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Clipping of chimpanzee. The correct English form is chimp, spelled C-H-I-M-P.
Definition
- 1Clipping of chimpanzee.
- 2A black person.
Etymology
Clipping of chimpanzee.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: cchimp,chhimp,chimmp,chimpp,chipm,chmip,cihmp,hcimp
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of chimp - 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.
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
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Using “chimp”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-H-I-M-P - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /t͡ʃɪmp/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “CHP” - see the side-by-side comparison. chimp vs CHP
- 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.