gold

/ɡəʊld/

//ɡəʊld// noun

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

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

The verdict

“gold” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #692 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#692
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A heavy yellow elemental metal of great value, with atomic number 79 and symbol Au.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

gold vs got
50% similar
gold vs GOP
0% similar
gold vs goo
50% similar

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

Key facts for gold
PropertyValue
Headwordgold
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɡəʊld/
Letters4
Frequency rank#692
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “gold” 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). gold lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for gold is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɡəʊld/. Corpus data places it at rank #692 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for gold, with forms such as "ggold", "glod", and "godl". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "got", "GOP", "goo", 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 Middle English gold, from Old English gold (“gold”), from Proto-West Germanic *golþ, from Proto-Germanic *gulþą (“gold”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰl̥h₃tóm (“gold”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- (“green, yellow”). Related to yellow; see there fo… The correct English form is gold, spelled G-O-L-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A heavy yellow elemental metal of great value, with atomic number 79 and symbol Au.
  2. 2
    A coin or coinage made of this material, or supposedly so.
  3. 3
    A deep yellow colour, resembling the metal gold.
  4. 4
    The bullseye of an archery target.
  5. 5
    A gold medal.
  6. 6
    Anything or anyone that is very valuable.
  7. 7
    A grill (jewellery worn on front teeth) made of gold.

Etymology

From Middle English gold, from Old English gold (“gold”), from Proto-West Germanic *golþ, from Proto-Germanic *gulþą (“gold”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰl̥h₃tóm (“gold”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- (“green, yellow”). Related to yellow; see there for more. Germanic cognates include Dutch goud, German Gold, Norwegian gull, Swedish guld, and cognates from other Indo-European languages include Latvian zelts, Russian зо́лото (zóloto), Persian زرد (zard, “yellow, golden”), Sanskrit हिरण्य (hiraṇya).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ggold,glod,godl,goldd,golld,ogld

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggold1glod2godl2goldd1golld1ogld2
Edit distance from "gold"

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 "gold"?
"gold" is spelled G-O-L-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡəʊld/.
What does "gold" mean?
As a noun, "gold" means: A heavy yellow elemental metal of great value, with atomic number 79 and symbol Au.
What words are commonly confused with "gold"?
"gold" is commonly confused with "got", "GOP", "goo". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gold"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gold" is /ɡəʊld/. 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 "gold"?
From Middle English gold, from Old English gold (“gold”), from Proto-West Germanic *golþ, from Proto-Germanic *gulþą (“gold”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰl̥h₃tóm (“gold”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- (“green, yellow”). Related to yellow; se... 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 “gold”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is G-O-L-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɡəʊld/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “got” - see the side-by-side comparison. gold vs got
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list