gong

/ɡɒŋ/

//ɡɒŋ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“gong” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,033. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,033
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A percussion instrument consisting of a metal disk that emits a loud resonant sound when struck with a soft hammer.

Corpus desk

Index EN-gong · gong · English

gong · rank #16,033 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,033
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH glitch

Nearest frequency peer: glitch (-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 “gong”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “gong” 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).

gong vs got
50% similar
gong vs gun
50% similar
gong vs GOP
0% similar

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

Key facts for gong
PropertyValue
Headwordgong
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɡɒŋ/
Letters4
Frequency rank#16,033
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “gong”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).gonglands 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 “glitch” (#16,032), “graded” (#16,034), “genital” (#16,031). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “gong” is #16,033. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around gong (IPA /ɡɒŋ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #16,033 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for gong, with forms such as "ggong", "gnog", and "gogn". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "got", "gun", "GOP", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Malay gong, possibly onomatopoeic. The correct English form is gong, spelled G-O-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    A percussion instrument consisting of a metal disk that emits a loud resonant sound when struck with a soft hammer.
  2. 2
    A medal or award, particularly Knight Bachelor.
  3. 3
    A metal target that emits a sound when it has been hit.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. All the time six or eight large Chinese gongs were being beaten by the vigorous arms of as many young men, producing such a deafening discord that I was glad to escape to the round house, where I slept very comfortably with half a dozen smoke-dried human skulls suspended over my head.
  2. This grooming of the national mindset explains the retention of 92 "hereditary peers" in the House of Lords: individuals who are gifted a right to sit in the nation's upper chamber and facilitate laws for no other reason than that their ancestor was the illegitimate child of some prince, or willing to spaff a few quid on the title when David Lloyd Gorge w…

Etymology

From Malay gong, possibly onomatopoeic.

This word in other languages

gongo(Español)gong(Français)Gong(Deutsch)gongo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggong
  • gnog
  • gogn
  • gongg
  • gonng
  • ogng

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggong1gnog2gogn2gongg1gonng1ogng2
Edit distance from "gong"

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 "gong"?
"gong" is spelled G-O-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡɒŋ/.
What does "gong" mean?
As a noun, "gong" means: A percussion instrument consisting of a metal disk that emits a loud resonant sound when struck with a soft hammer.
What words are commonly confused with "gong"?
"gong" is commonly confused with "got", "gun", "GOP". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gong"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gong" is /ɡɒŋ/. 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 "gong"?
From Malay gong, possibly onomatopoeic. 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 "gong", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

gasp#16,030heed#16,041Indo#16,050jars#16,056

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

ERNIE6 variantsloch6 variantsLucia6 variantsmens6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list