dob

/dɑb/

//dɑb// verb

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

"dob" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dob” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #44,170) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#44,170
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To report a person to someone in authority for a wrongdoing. (For transitive forms see dob in, dob on.)

Corpus desk

Index EN-dob · dob · English

dob · rank #44,170 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #44,170
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH disturbingly

Nearest frequency peer: disturbingly (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “dob”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “dob” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

dob vs Dr
0% similar
dob vs DS
0% similar
dob vs DT
0% similar

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

Key facts for dob
PropertyValue
Headworddob
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɑb/
Letters3
Frequency rank#44,170
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “dob” 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).doblands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “disturbingly” (#44,169), “doer” (#44,171), “doorknob” (#44,172). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for dob is neighbouring look-alikes ("Dr", "DS", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /dɑb/. Frequency #44,170 among 3,470 “D” headwords. 2 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

No misspelling variants are generated for dob in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Dr", "DS", "DT", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Uncertain. Possibly from Middle English dobben. The correct English form is dob, spelled D-O-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    To report a person to someone in authority for a wrongdoing. (For transitive forms see dob in, dob on.)
  2. 2
    To play truant.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Students often claimed that an act of informing was just ‘dobbing as a joke’ and therefore ‘not really dobbing’.
  2. Alex was concerned that if others thought he had dobbed, things would get even worse for him. Dobbing was the worst thing a student could do.

Etymology

Uncertain. Possibly from Middle English dobben.

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 "dob"?
"dob" is spelled D-O-B. The IPA pronunciation is /dɑb/.
What does "dob" mean?
As a verb, "dob" means: To report a person to someone in authority for a wrongdoing. (For transitive forms see dob in, dob on.)
What words are commonly confused with "dob"?
"dob" is commonly confused with "Dr", "DS", "DT". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dob"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dob" is /dɑb/. 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 "dob"?
Uncertain. Possibly from Middle English dobben. 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 "dob", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

DSA#44,177GBS#44,219gnc#44,229hea#44,248

What to do next

You've looked up "dob". Here's where to go from here.

  • "dob" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "Dr". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #44,170 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "D" letter cohort. D–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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