gallon

/ˈɡælən/

//ˈɡælən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“gallon” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #10,369. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#10,369
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
15
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A unit of volume, equivalent to eight pints

Corpus desk

Index EN-gallon · gallon · English

gallon · rank #10,369 · 7 variants · 15 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #10,369
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 15 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH forthcoming

Nearest frequency peer: forthcoming (-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 “gallon”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “gallon” 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).

gallon vs Gaon
50% similar
gallon vs Gaston
50% similar
gallon vs Gallup
50% similar

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

Key facts for gallon
PropertyValue
Headwordgallon
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɡælən/
Letters6
Frequency rank#10,369
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs15
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “gallon”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “forthcoming” (#10,368), “forensic” (#10,367), “glowing” (#10,371). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “gallon” is #10,369. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around gallon (IPA /ˈɡælən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #10,369 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for gallon, with forms such as "agllon", "gallno", and "gallonn". 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 15 confusable-pair relationships, "Gaon", "Gaston", "Gallup", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gallon, galoun, galun, from Old Northern French galun, galon (“liquid measure”) (compare Old French jalon), from Late Latin galum, galus (“measure of wine”), from Vulgar Latin *galla (“vessel”), possibly from Gaulish *galla, ultimately f… The correct English form is gallon, spelled G-A-L-L-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A unit of volume, equivalent to eight pints
  2. 2
    exactly 4.54609 liters; an imperial gallon
  3. 3
    231 cubic inches or approximately 3.785 liters for liquids (a "U.S. liquid gallon")
  4. 4
    one-eighth of a U.S. bushel or approximately 4.405 liters for dry goods (a "U.S. dry gallon").
  5. 5
    A large quantity (of any liquid).

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. The pipe burst and gallons of water flooded into the kitchen.

Etymology

From Middle English gallon, galoun, galun, from Old Northern French galun, galon (“liquid measure”) (compare Old French jalon), from Late Latin galum, galus (“measure of wine”), from Vulgar Latin *galla (“vessel”), possibly from Gaulish *galla, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *kel- (“goblet”). Cognate with Ancient Greek κύλιξ (kúlix, “cup”), Sanskrit कलश (kalaśa, “jar, pitcher; measure of liquid”). Related to Old French gille (“wine measure”) (from Medieval Latin gillō (“earthenware jar”)), Old French jale (“bowl”), Old French jaloie (“measure of capacity”).

This word in other languages

galón(Español)gallon(Français)Gallone(Deutsch)galão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • agllon
  • gallno
  • gallonn
  • galoln
  • galon
  • ggallon
  • glalon

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of gallon - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

agllon2gallno2gallonn1galoln2galon1ggallon1glalon2
Edit distance from "gallon"

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 "gallon"?
"gallon" is spelled G-A-L-L-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡælən/.
What does "gallon" mean?
As a noun, "gallon" means: A unit of volume, equivalent to eight pints
What words are commonly confused with "gallon"?
"gallon" is commonly confused with "Gaon", "Gaston", "Gallup". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gallon"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gallon" is /ˈɡælən/. 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 "gallon"?
From Middle English gallon, galoun, galun, from Old Northern French galun, galon (“liquid measure”) (compare Old French jalon), from Late Latin galum, galus (“measure of wine”), from Vulgar Latin *galla (“vessel”), possibly from Gaulish *galla, ul... 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 "gallon", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

finite#10,365greedy#10,376Hilton#10,378eighty#10,356

Similar misspelling depth

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

leigh7 variantsCongo7 variantsChloe7 variantsliner7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list