grab

/ɡɹæb/

//ɡɹæb// verb

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

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

The verdict

“grab” has 5 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,896. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,896
frequency rank, English
18,276
“G” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To grip suddenly; to seize; to clutch.

Corpus desk

Index EN-grab · grab · English

grab · rank #2,896 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,896
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 18,276
  • PHOTO-FINISH Hollywood

Nearest frequency peer: Hollywood (+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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “grab”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “grab” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

grab vs GTA
0% similar
grab vs GRE
0% similar
grab vs GSA
0% similar

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

Key facts for grab
PropertyValue
Headwordgrab
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ɡɹæb/
Letters4
Frequency rank#2,896
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “grab” 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). grab 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 5 spelling variants around grab (IPA /ɡɹæb/), averb. Corpus frequency is #2,896 among 18,276 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for grab, with forms such as "ggrab", "grabb", and "grba". 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, "GTA", "GRE", "GSA", 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 Dutch grabben or Middle Low German grabben (“to grasp, grab, seize, snatch”), from Old Saxon gravan, from Proto-West Germanic *grabbōn, a secondary form of Proto-Germanic *grabōną (“to gather, rake”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (“to gathe… The correct English form is grab, spelled G-R-A-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    To grip suddenly; to seize; to clutch.
  2. 2
    To make a sudden grasping or clutching motion (at something).
  3. 3
    To restrain someone; to arrest.
  4. 4
    To grip the attention of; to enthrall or interest.
  5. 5
    To quickly collect, retrieve, or take.
  6. 6
    To consume something quickly.
  7. 7
    To take the opportunity of.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I grabbed her hand to pull her back from the cliff edge.
  2. Old Applegate, in the stern, just set and looked at me, and Lord James, amidship, waved both arms and kept hollering for help. I took a couple of everlasting big strokes and managed to grab hold of the skiff's rail, close to the stern.

Etymology

From Middle Dutch grabben or Middle Low German grabben (“to grasp, grab, seize, snatch”), from Old Saxon gravan, from Proto-West Germanic *grabbōn, a secondary form of Proto-Germanic *grabōną (“to gather, rake”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (“to gather, rake, grab, seize”). Related to archaic German grappen (“to grab”), Danish grabbe (“to grab”), Swedish grabba (“to grab”), Old Norse grápa (“to seize, appropriate”), Middle English grappen (“to feel, grope, grasp, clutch”), Old English ġegræppian (“to seize”). Related also to Sanskrit गृह्णाति (gṛhṇā́ti), गृभ्णाति (gṛbhṇā́ti, “he seizes”), Avestan 𐬔𐬭𐬀𐬠 (grab, “to seize”)), Macedonian грабне (grabne, “to snatch”), Bulgarian грабя (grabja, “to rob, to grab”).

This word in other languages

asir(Español)saisir(Français)greifen(Deutsch)agarrar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggrab
  • grabb
  • grba
  • grrab
  • rgab

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of grab - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ggrab1grabb1grba2grrab1rgab2
Edit distance from "grab"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "grab"?
"grab" is spelled G-R-A-B. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡɹæb/.
What does "grab" mean?
As a verb, "grab" means: To grip suddenly; to seize; to clutch.
What words are commonly confused with "grab"?
"grab" is commonly confused with "GTA", "GRE", "GSA". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "grab"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "grab" is /ɡɹæb/. 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 "grab"?
From Middle Dutch grabben or Middle Low German grabben (“to grasp, grab, seize, snatch”), from Old Saxon gravan, from Proto-West Germanic *grabbōn, a secondary form of Proto-Germanic *grabōną (“to gather, rake”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- ... 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 "grab", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

pink#2,905tall#2,921puts#2,852peak#2,847

Similar misspelling depth

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

loud5 variantslets5 variantshaha5 variantssemi5 variants
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