clove

/kləʊv/

//kləʊv// noun

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

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

The verdict

“clove” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #32,327. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#32,327
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A very pungent aromatic spice, the unexpanded flower bud of the clove tree.

Corpus desk

Index EN-clove · clove · English

clove · rank #32,327 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #32,327
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH clogging

Nearest frequency peer: clogging (-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 “clove”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “clove” 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).

clove vs Coe
40% similar
clove vs Cov
40% similar
clove vs come
60% similar

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

Key facts for clove
PropertyValue
Headwordclove
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kləʊv/
Letters5
Frequency rank#32,327
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “clove”

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).clovelands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “clogging” (#32,326), “columbine” (#32,328), “clenched” (#32,325). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “clove” is #32,327. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around clove (IPA /kləʊv/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #32,327 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for clove, with forms such as "cclove", "cllove", and "cloev". 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, "Coe", "Cov", "come", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English clove, an alteration of earlier clowe, borrowed from the first component of Old French clou (de girofle) (modern French clou de girofle), from Latin clāvus (“nail”) for its shape. Also see clāva (“knotty branch, club”). Doublet of clou a… The correct English form is clove, spelled C-L-O-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A very pungent aromatic spice, the unexpanded flower bud of the clove tree.
  2. 2
    A clove tree, of the species Syzygium aromaticum (syn. Caryophyllus aromaticus), native to the Moluccas (Indonesian islands), which produces the spice.
  3. 3
    An old English measure of weight, containing 7 pounds (3.2 kg), i.e. half a stone.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Seven pounds make a clove, 2 cloves a stone, 2 stone a tod, 6+¹⁄₂ tods a wey, 2 weys a sack, 12 sacks a last. The 'Pathway' points out the etymology of the word cloves; it calls them ' claves or nails.' It is to be observed here that a sack is 13 tods, and a tod 28 pounds, so that the sack is 364 pounds.
  2. By a statute of 9 Hen. VI. it was ordained that the wey of cheese should contain 32 cloves of 7 lbs. each, i.e. 224 lbs., or 2 cwts.

Etymology

From Middle English clove, an alteration of earlier clowe, borrowed from the first component of Old French clou (de girofle) (modern French clou de girofle), from Latin clāvus (“nail”) for its shape. Also see clāva (“knotty branch, club”). Doublet of clou and clavus.

This word in other languages

clavo de olor(Español)clou de girofle(Français)Gewürznelke(Deutsch)cravo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cclove
  • cllove
  • cloev
  • clovve
  • clvoe
  • colve
  • lcove

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cclove1cllove1cloev2clovve1clvoe2colve2lcove2
Edit distance from "clove"

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 "clove"?
"clove" is spelled C-L-O-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kləʊv/.
What does "clove" mean?
As a noun, "clove" means: A very pungent aromatic spice, the unexpanded flower bud of the clove tree.
What words are commonly confused with "clove"?
"clove" is commonly confused with "Coe", "Cov", "come". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "clove"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "clove" is /kləʊv/. 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 "clove"?
From Middle English clove, an alteration of earlier clowe, borrowed from the first component of Old French clou (de girofle) (modern French clou de girofle), from Latin clāvus (“nail”) for its shape. Also see clāva (“knotty branch, club”). Doublet... 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 "clove", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

comte#32,330chump#32,322cysts#32,340Carta#32,310

Similar misspelling depth

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

dapper7 variantsballon7 variantsepics7 variantserrant7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list