dong

/dɒŋ/

//dɒŋ// noun

"dong" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dong” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,737. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,737
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - The currency of Vietnam, 100 xus. Symbol: ₫

Corpus desk

Index EN-dong · dong · English

dong · rank #9,737 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,737
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH distribute

Nearest frequency peer: distribute (-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 “dong”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “dong” 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 2, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

dong vs dot
50% similar
dong vs dug
50% similar
dong vs DOS
0% similar

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

Key facts for dong
PropertyValue
Headworddong
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/dɒŋ/
Letters4
Frequency rank#9,737
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “dong” 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). dong lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around dong (IPA /dɒŋ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,737 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for dong, with forms such as "ddong", "dnog", and "dogn". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "dot", "dug", "DOS", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Vietnamese đồng, from Middle Chinese 銅 (duwng, “copper”), from Old Chinese 銅 (*doːŋ). Cognate with Mandarin 銅 /铜 (tóng, “copper”). The correct English form is dong, spelled D-O-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    The currency of Vietnam, 100 xus. Symbol: ₫
  2. 2
    The currency of South Vietnam, 100 xus. Symbol: Đ.

Etymology

Borrowed from Vietnamese đồng, from Middle Chinese 銅 (duwng, “copper”), from Old Chinese 銅 (*doːŋ). Cognate with Mandarin 銅 /铜 (tóng, “copper”).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddong
  • dnog
  • dogn
  • dongg
  • donng
  • odng

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of dong - 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.

ddong1dnog2dogn2dongg1donng1odng2
Edit distance from "dong"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "dong"?
"dong" is spelled D-O-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /dɒŋ/.
What does "dong" mean?
As a noun, "dong" means: The currency of Vietnam, 100 xus. Symbol: ₫
What words are commonly confused with "dong"?
"dong" is commonly confused with "dot", "dug", "DOS". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dong"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dong" is /dɒŋ/. 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 "dong"?
Borrowed from Vietnamese đồng, from Middle Chinese 銅 (duwng, “copper”), from Old Chinese 銅 (*doːŋ). Cognate with Mandarin 銅 /铜 (tóng, “copper”). 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 "dong", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

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