group

/ɡɹuːp/

//ɡɹuːp// noun

"group" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“group” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #241 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#241
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A number of things or persons being in some relation to one another.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

group vs GRU
0% similar
group vs grow
60% similar
group vs grub
60% similar

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

Key facts for group
PropertyValue
Headwordgroup
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɡɹuːp/
Letters5
Frequency rank#241
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “group” 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). group 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 group is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɡɹuːp/. Corpus data places it at rank #241 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 15 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for group, with forms such as "ggroup", "gorup", and "gropu". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "GRU", "grow", "grub", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *grewbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *kruppazder. Frankish *kruppbor. Vulgar Latin *cruppus Italian gruppobor. French groupebor. ▲ Italian gruppobor. English group From French groupe (“cluster, group”), from Italian gruppo, groppo … The correct English form is group, spelled G-R-O-U-P.

Definition

  1. 1
    A number of things or persons being in some relation to one another.
  2. 2
    A set with an associative binary operation, under which there exists an identity element, and such that each element has an inverse.
  3. 3
    An effective divisor on a curve.
  4. 4
    A (usually small) group of people who perform music together.
  5. 5
    A small number (up to about fifty) of galaxies that are near each other.
  6. 6
    A column in the periodic table of chemical elements.
  7. 7
    A functional group.
  8. 8
    A subset of a culture or of a society.
  9. 9
    An air force formation.
  10. 10
    A collection of formations or rock strata.
  11. 11
    A number of users with the same rights with respect to accession, modification, and execution of files, computers and peripherals.
  12. 12
    An element of an espresso machine from which hot water pours into the portafilter.
  13. 13
    A number of eighth, sixteenth, etc., notes joined at the stems; sometimes rather indefinitely applied to any ornament made up of a few short notes.
  14. 14
    A set of teams playing each other in the same division, while not during the same period playing any teams that belong to other sets in the division.
  15. 15
    A commercial organization.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *grewbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *kruppazder. Frankish *kruppbor. Vulgar Latin *cruppus Italian gruppobor. French groupebor. ▲ Italian gruppobor. English group From French groupe (“cluster, group”), from Italian gruppo, groppo (“a knot, heap, group, bag (of money)”). In the "group theory" sense, calqued from French groupe, a term coined by the young French mathematician Évariste Galois in 1830. Cognate with German Kropf (“crop, craw, bunch”); Old English cropp, croppa (“cluster, bunch, sprout, flower, berry, ear of corn, crop”) (whence English crop); Dutch krop (“craw”), Icelandic kroppr (“hump, bunch”). Doublet of crop and croup.

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ggroup,gorup,gropu,groupp,grroup,gruop,rgoup

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggroup1gorup2gropu2groupp1grroup1gruop2rgoup2
Edit distance from "group"

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 "group"?
"group" is spelled G-R-O-U-P. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡɹuːp/.
What does "group" mean?
As a noun, "group" means: A number of things or persons being in some relation to one another.
What words are commonly confused with "group"?
"group" is commonly confused with "GRU", "grow", "grub". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "group"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "group" is /ɡɹuːp/. 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 "group"?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *grewbʰ-der. Proto-Germanic *kruppazder. Frankish *kruppbor. Vulgar Latin *cruppus Italian gruppobor. French groupebor. ▲ Italian gruppobor. English group From French groupe (“cluster, group”), from Italian grupp... 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 “group”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is G-R-O-U-P - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɡɹuːp/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “GRU” - see the side-by-side comparison. group vs GRU
  • 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