ebony

/ˈɛb.ən.i/

//ˈɛb.ən.i// noun

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

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

The verdict

“ebony” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,548. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,548
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
11
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A hard, dense, deep black wood from various subtropical and tropical trees, especially of the genus Diospyros.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ebony · ebony · English

ebony · rank #18,548 · 7 variants · 11 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,548
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 11 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH Dracula

Nearest frequency peer: Dracula (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “ebony”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “ebony” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

ebony vs eon
60% similar
ebony vs elon
60% similar
ebony vs econ
60% similar

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

Key facts for ebony
PropertyValue
Headwordebony
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛb.ən.i/
Letters5
Frequency rank#18,548
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs11
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “ebony”

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

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Dracula” (#18,547), “DOD” (#18,546), “Eileen” (#18,550). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “ebony” is #18,548. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around ebony (IPA /ˈɛb.ən.i/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #18,548 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for ebony, with forms such as "beony", "ebbony", and "ebnoy". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 11 confusable-pair relationships, "eon", "elon", "econ", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier heben, hebeny, from Middle English ebenif, hebenyf (influenced by Late Latin hebeninus), from Ecclesiastical Latin ebenius (“of ebony”), from Latin hebenus (“ebon tree”), from Ancient Greek ἔβενος (ébenos), from Egyptian hbnj, U13:n-Z4:M3 The correct English form is ebony, spelled E-B-O-N-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A hard, dense, deep black wood from various subtropical and tropical trees, especially of the genus Diospyros.
  2. 2
    A tree that yields such wood.
  3. 3
    A deep, dark black colour.
  4. 4
    Dark skin colour.
  5. 5
    A black key on a piano or other keyboard instrument (as opposed to ivory).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. “You live up the road past the ebony tree, right?” he asked, looking past me.
  2. Near-synonyms: onyx, raven

Etymology

From earlier heben, hebeny, from Middle English ebenif, hebenyf (influenced by Late Latin hebeninus), from Ecclesiastical Latin ebenius (“of ebony”), from Latin hebenus (“ebon tree”), from Ancient Greek ἔβενος (ébenos), from Egyptian hbnj, U13:n-Z4:M3

This word in other languages

ébano(Español)ébène(Français)Ebenholz(Deutsch)ébano(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • beony
  • ebbony
  • ebnoy
  • ebonny
  • ebonyy
  • eboyn
  • eobny

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of ebony - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

beony2ebbony1ebnoy2ebonny1ebonyy1eboyn2eobny2
Edit distance from "ebony"

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 "ebony"?
"ebony" is spelled E-B-O-N-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛb.ən.i/.
What does "ebony" mean?
As a noun, "ebony" means: A hard, dense, deep black wood from various subtropical and tropical trees, especially of the genus Diospyros.
What words are commonly confused with "ebony"?
"ebony" is commonly confused with "eon", "elon", "econ". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "ebony"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ebony" is /ˈɛb.ən.i/. 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 "ebony"?
From earlier heben, hebeny, from Middle English ebenif, hebenyf (influenced by Late Latin hebeninus), from Ecclesiastical Latin ebenius (“of ebony”), from Latin hebenus (“ebon tree”), from Ancient Greek ἔβενος (ébenos), from Egyptian hbnj, U13:n-Z... 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 "ebony", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

folly#18,561Davey#18,534fumes#18,566coupe#18,524

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

Eileen7 variantsCullen7 variantsGerrard7 variantscooker7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list