doula

/ˈduːlə/

//ˈduːlə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“doula” is uncommon English (frequency #69,800 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#69,800
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A trained support person who provides emotional, physical and practical assistance to a pregnant woman or couple before, during or after childbirth.

Corpus desk

Index EN-doula · doula · English

doula · rank #69,800 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #69,800
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH Duchene

Nearest frequency peer: Duchene (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “doula”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “doula” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for doula
PropertyValue
Headworddoula
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈduːlə/
Letters5
Frequency rank#69,800
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “doula” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).doulafalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Duchene” (#69,801), “Donoghue” (#69,798), “Duchenne” (#69,802). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “doula” is #69,800. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

doula is uncommon English at frequency #69,800 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈduːlə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for doula, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Greek δούλα (doúla, “servant-woman”), from Ancient Greek δούλη (doúlē, “female slave”). Popularized by the American anthropologist Dana Raphael in the book The Tender Gift: Breastfeeding (1973), where the word is credited to Eleni Rassias. The correct English form is doula, spelled D-O-U-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A trained support person who provides emotional, physical and practical assistance to a pregnant woman or couple before, during or after childbirth.
  2. 2
    A trained person who provides similar support to someone who is diagnosed with an incurable condition and is receiving end-of-life care.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The function of the doula varies in different cultures from a little help here and there to complete succoring, including bathing, cooking, carrying, and feeding. Whatever the doula does, however, is less important than the fact that she is there.
  2. Rebekah Rosler, a therapist and doula, decided to leave, even though her family history in New York goes back to the 1870s, she said.

Etymology

Borrowed from Greek δούλα (doúla, “servant-woman”), from Ancient Greek δούλη (doúlē, “female slave”). Popularized by the American anthropologist Dana Raphael in the book The Tender Gift: Breastfeeding (1973), where the word is credited to Eleni Rassias.

This word in other languages

doula(Français)doula(Português)

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 "doula"?
"doula" is spelled D-O-U-L-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈduːlə/.
What does "doula" mean?
As a noun, "doula" means: A trained support person who provides emotional, physical and practical assistance to a pregnant woman or couple before, during or after childbirth.
How do you pronounce "doula"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "doula" is /ˈduːlə/. 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 "doula"?
Borrowed from Greek δούλα (doúla, “servant-woman”), from Ancient Greek δούλη (doúlē, “female slave”). Popularized by the American anthropologist Dana Raphael in the book The Tender Gift: Breastfeeding (1973), where the word is credited to Eleni Ra... 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 "doula", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Eadie#69,806Ekman#69,814elfin#69,818deign#69,781

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list