escrow

/ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯/

//ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯// noun

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

"escrow" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“escrow” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #27,449. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#27,449
frequency rank, English
18,836
“E” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A contractual arrangement whereby money or assets are held in trust by an independent agent by the agreement of the parties, which can only be released to the relevant party once certain contractua...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

escrow vs eschew
67% similar

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

Key facts for escrow
PropertyValue
Headwordescrow
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯/
Letters6
Frequency rank#27,449
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “escrow” 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). escrow 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 9 spelling variants around escrow (IPA /ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #27,449 among 18,836 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for escrow, with forms such as "ecsrow", "esccrow", and "escorw". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "eschew", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Law French escrowe, from Old French escroe (“register, note; bit of parchment; piece”), from Frankish *skrōda (“piece”), from Proto-Germanic *skraudō, derivative of Proto-Germanic *skraudaną (“to shred”). Doublet of scrow and shred an… The correct English form is escrow, spelled E-S-C-R-O-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    A contractual arrangement whereby money or assets are held in trust by an independent agent by the agreement of the parties, which can only be released to the relevant party once certain contractual conditions have been fulfilled.
  2. 2
    The money or assets so held.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Law French escrowe, from Old French escroe (“register, note; bit of parchment; piece”), from Frankish *skrōda (“piece”), from Proto-Germanic *skraudō, derivative of Proto-Germanic *skraudaną (“to shred”). Doublet of scrow and shred and partially scroll.

This word in other languages

fideicomiso(Español)Hinterlegung(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ecsrow
  • esccrow
  • escorw
  • escroww
  • escrrow
  • escrwo
  • esrcow
  • esscrow
  • secrow

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ecsrow2esccrow1escorw2escroww1escrrow1escrwo2esrcow2esscrow1
Edit distance from "escrow"

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 "escrow"?
"escrow" is spelled E-S-C-R-O-W. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯/.
What does "escrow" mean?
As a noun, "escrow" means: A contractual arrangement whereby money or assets are held in trust by an independent agent by the agreement of the parties, which can only be released to the relevant party once certain contractua...
What words are commonly confused with "escrow"?
"escrow" is commonly confused with "eschew". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "escrow"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "escrow" is /ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯/. 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 "escrow"?
Learned borrowing from Law French escrowe, from Old French escroe (“register, note; bit of parchment; piece”), from Frankish *skrōda (“piece”), from Proto-Germanic *skraudō, derivative of Proto-Germanic *skraudaną (“to shred”). Doublet of scrow an... 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.

Using “escrow”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is E-S-C-R-O-W - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈɛ.skɹəʊ̯/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “eschew” - see the side-by-side comparison. escrow vs eschew
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Same frequency band

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