courb

verb

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

The verdict

“courb” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To bend; to bow.

Corpus desk

Index EN-courb · courb · English

courb · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for courb
PropertyValue
Headwordcourb
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters5
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “courb” in English

courbranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

courb is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To bend; to bow.".

Zero misspellings are on record for courb in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English courben, from Middle French courber, from Latin curvō. Doublet of curb. The correct English form is courb, spelled C-O-U-R-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    To bend; to bow.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Thanne I courbed on my knees · and cryed hir of grace.
  2. Sallys may also be propagated like Vines, by courbing, and bowing them in Arches.

Etymology

From Middle English courben, from Middle French courber, from Latin curvō. Doublet of curb.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "courb"?
"courb" is spelled C-O-U-R-B.
What does "courb" mean?
As a verb, "courb" means: To bend; to bow.
What is the origin of the word "courb"?
From Middle English courben, from Middle French courber, from Latin curvō. Doublet of curb. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list