DeKalb
"dekalb" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“DeKalb” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #36,952 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #36,952
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 6
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Ellipsis of DeKalb County.
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 | DeKalb |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #36,952 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 6 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “DeKalb” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for DeKalb is 6 letters long, classified as a proper noun. Corpus data places it at rank #36,952 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 DeKalb, with forms such as "ddekalb", "deaklb", and "dekabl". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 6 confusable-pair relationships, "Denali", "deal", "deals", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From de Kalb. The correct English form is DeKalb, spelled D-E-K-A-L-B.
Definition
- 1Ellipsis of DeKalb County.
- 2A surname. Alternative form of de Kalb.
Etymology
From de Kalb.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ddekalb,deaklb,dekabl,dekalbb,dekallb,dekkalb,deklab,dkealb,edkalb
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of DeKalb - 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
How do you spell "DeKalb"?
What does "DeKalb" mean?
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Using “DeKalb”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-E-K-A-L-B - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Don't mix it up with “Denali” - see the side-by-side comparison. DeKalb vs Denali
- 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.