Esau

/ˈiːsɔː/

//ˈiːsɔː// name

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

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

The verdict

“Esau” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #48,729) as a proper noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#48,729
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The son of Isaac and Rebekah and the older twin brother of Jacob.

Corpus desk

Index EN-esau · Esau · English

Esau · rank #48,729 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #48,729
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH equalize

Nearest frequency peer: equalize (-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 neighbours of confusable “Esau”

Peers at similar corpus weight, separate from look-alike pairs below

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “Esau” against nearest ranked English headwords, not a reprint of the confusable-pair desk.

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).

Esau vs EU
25% similar
Esau vs est
25% similar
Esau vs EVA
25% similar

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

Key facts for Esau
PropertyValue
HeadwordEsau
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈiːsɔː/
Letters4
Frequency rank#48,729
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “Esau”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).Esaulands 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 “equalize” (#48,728), “eschew” (#48,730), “etude” (#48,731). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “Esau” is #48,729. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for Esau is neighbouring look-alikes ("EU", "est", …), not just typos; it is aproper noun pronounced /ˈiːsɔː/. Frequency #48,729 among 2,246 “E” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for Esau, with forms such as "easu", "essau", and "esua". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "EU", "est", "EVA", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Ancient Greek Ἡσαῦ (Hēsaû), from Biblical Hebrew עֵשָׂו (ʿēśāw). The correct English form is Esau, spelled E-S-A-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    The son of Isaac and Rebekah and the older twin brother of Jacob.
  2. 2
    A male given name from Hebrew.
  3. 3
    A surname.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. And the boyes grew; and Eſau was a cunning hunter, a man of the fielde: and Iacob was a plaine man, dwelling in tents.

Etymology

From Ancient Greek Ἡσαῦ (Hēsaû), from Biblical Hebrew עֵשָׂו (ʿēśāw).

This word in other languages

Esaú(Español)Ésaü(Français)Esau(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • easu
  • essau
  • esua
  • seau

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

easu2essau1esua2seau2
Edit distance from "Esau"

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 "Esau"?
"Esau" is spelled E-S-A-U. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈiːsɔː/.
What does "Esau" mean?
As a proper noun, "Esau" means: The son of Isaac and Rebekah and the older twin brother of Jacob.
What words are commonly confused with "Esau"?
"Esau" is commonly confused with "EU", "est", "EVA". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Esau"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Esau" is /ˈiːsɔː/. 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 "Esau"?
From Ancient Greek Ἡσαῦ (Hēsaû), from Biblical Hebrew עֵשָׂו (ʿēśāw). 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 "Esau", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Emin#48,722elks#48,721Fata#48,741derp#48,699

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list