grouse

/ɡɹaʊs/

//ɡɹaʊs// noun

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

The verdict

“grouse” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #24,178. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#24,178
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
18
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any of various game birds of the subfamily Tetraoninae which inhabit temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere; specifically, the red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scotica) native to hea...

Corpus desk

Index EN-grouse · grouse · English

grouse · rank #24,178 · 8 variants · 18 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #24,178
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 18 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH gripped

Nearest frequency peer: gripped (-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 “grouse”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “grouse” 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).

grouse vs grows
67% similar
grouse vs grove
67% similar
grouse vs grout
67% similar

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

Key facts for grouse
PropertyValue
Headwordgrouse
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɡɹaʊs/
Letters6
Frequency rank#24,178
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs18
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “grouse”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).grouselands 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 “gripped” (#24,177), “growl” (#24,179), “grilling” (#24,176). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “grouse” is #24,178. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around grouse (IPA /ɡɹaʊs/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #24,178 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for grouse, with forms such as "ggrouse", "goruse", and "grosue". 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 18 confusable-pair relationships, "grows", "grove", "grout", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Attested in the 1530s, as grows ("moorhen"), a plural used collectively. The origin of the noun is unknown; the following derivations have been suggested: * From Old French grue (“crane”) (modern French grue) or Medieval Latin gruta (“crane”), both from Lat… The correct English form is grouse, spelled G-R-O-U-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of various game birds of the subfamily Tetraoninae which inhabit temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere; specifically, the red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scotica) native to heather moorland on the British Isles.
  2. 2
    The flesh or meat of this bird eaten as food.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Among fowls for the table [of King Henry VIII] are crocards, winders, runners, grows, and peions, but neither Turky or Guiney-fowl.
  2. Looke to 't, young growſe: Ile lay it on, and ſure; / Take 't off who's wull.

Etymology

Attested in the 1530s, as grows ("moorhen"), a plural used collectively. The origin of the noun is unknown; the following derivations have been suggested: * From Old French grue (“crane”) (modern French grue) or Medieval Latin gruta (“crane”), both from Latin grūs (“crane”). * Borrowed from Celtic or a different Medieval Latin word. * Imitative of the bird’s call. The verb is derived from the noun.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggrouse
  • goruse
  • grosue
  • groues
  • grousse
  • grrouse
  • gruose
  • rgouse

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggrouse1goruse2grosue2groues2grousse1grrouse1gruose2rgouse2
Edit distance from "grouse"

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 "grouse"?
"grouse" is spelled G-R-O-U-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡɹaʊs/.
What does "grouse" mean?
As a noun, "grouse" means: Any of various game birds of the subfamily Tetraoninae which inhabit temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere; specifically, the red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scotica) native to hea...
What words are commonly confused with "grouse"?
"grouse" is commonly confused with "grows", "grove", "grout". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "grouse"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "grouse" is /ɡɹaʊs/. 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 "grouse"?
Attested in the 1530s, as grows ("moorhen"), a plural used collectively. The origin of the noun is unknown; the following derivations have been suggested: * From Old French grue (“crane”) (modern French grue) or Medieval Latin gruta (“crane”), bot... 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 "grouse", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list