English Word Reference Free

ese

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

3 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

open dictionary

Access

Free

no sign-up needed

Detailed reference entry for the English word "ese", 3-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "ese" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "ese" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

ese is aEnglishnoun. It means: dude, man. (Usually used vocatively). Pronounced /ˈɛˌseɪ/. Often confused with ex and et.

Key facts for ese
PropertyValue
Headwordese
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛˌseɪ/
Letters3
Frequency rank#34,478
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of ese in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for ese is 3 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɛˌseɪ/. Corpus data places it at rank #34,478 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "dude, man. (Usually used vocatively).".

No frequent misspelling variants are recorded for ese in our index, suggesting the orthography either follows predictable English patterns or the word is uncommon enough that typo corpora lack signal.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ex", "et", "EU", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Mexican Spanish ése (“dude”). Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is ese, spelled E-S-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    dude, man. (Usually used vocatively).

Etymology

Borrowed from Mexican Spanish ése (“dude”).

Frequency rank: #34,478 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "ese"?
"ese" is spelled E-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛˌseɪ/.
What does "ese" mean?
As a noun, "ese" means: dude, man. (Usually used vocatively).
What words are commonly confused with "ese"?
"ese" is commonly confused with "ex", "et", "EU". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "ese"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ese" is /ˈɛˌseɪ/. 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 "ese"?
Borrowed from Mexican Spanish ése (“dude”). 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter E in our English index:

Explore PlainSpell

Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.