haiku

/ˈhaɪkuː/

//ˈhaɪkuː// noun

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

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

The verdict

“haiku” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,105. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,105
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
17
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A Japanese poem in three lines, the first and last consisting of five morae, and the second consisting of seven morae, usually with an emphasis on the season or a naturalistic theme.

Corpus desk

Index EN-haiku · haiku · English

haiku · rank #26,105 · 6 variants · 17 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,105
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 17 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH gunning

Nearest frequency peer: gunning (-2 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 “haiku”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “haiku” 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).

haiku vs Hak
40% similar
haiku vs hair
60% similar
haiku vs hike
60% similar

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

Key facts for haiku
PropertyValue
Headwordhaiku
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈhaɪkuː/
Letters5
Frequency rank#26,105
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs17
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “haiku”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).haikulands 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 “gunning” (#26,103), “harrow” (#26,107), “guilds” (#26,102). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “haiku” is #26,105. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around haiku (IPA /ˈhaɪkuː/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #26,105 among 2,646 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for haiku, with forms such as "ahiku", "haikku", and "haiuk". 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 17 confusable-pair relationships, "Hak", "hair", "hike", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Japanese 俳(はい)句(く) (haiku), from Middle Chinese 俳 (beaj, “paralleled [writing]”) + 句 (kɨoᴴ, “line”). The correct English form is haiku, spelled H-A-I-K-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    A Japanese poem in three lines, the first and last consisting of five morae, and the second consisting of seven morae, usually with an emphasis on the season or a naturalistic theme.
  2. 2
    A three-line poem in any language, with five syllables in the first and last lines and seven syllables in the second, usually with an emphasis on the season or a naturalistic theme.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Some of the results resemble haikus.
  2. Haiku, a poem

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 俳(はい)句(く) (haiku), from Middle Chinese 俳 (beaj, “paralleled [writing]”) + 句 (kɨoᴴ, “line”).

Synonyms

hokku

This word in other languages

haiku(Español)haïku(Français)Haiku(Deutsch)haicai(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ahiku
  • haikku
  • haiuk
  • hakiu
  • hhaiku
  • hiaku

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ahiku2haikku1haiuk2hakiu2hhaiku1hiaku2
Edit distance from "haiku"

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 "haiku"?
"haiku" is spelled H-A-I-K-U. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhaɪkuː/.
What does "haiku" mean?
As a noun, "haiku" means: A Japanese poem in three lines, the first and last consisting of five morae, and the second consisting of seven morae, usually with an emphasis on the season or a naturalistic theme.
What words are commonly confused with "haiku"?
"haiku" is commonly confused with "Hak", "hair", "hike". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "haiku"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "haiku" is /ˈhaɪkuː/. 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 "haiku"?
Borrowed from Japanese 俳(はい)句(く) (haiku), from Middle Chinese 俳 (beaj, “paralleled [writing]”) + 句 (kɨoᴴ, “line”). 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 "haiku", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Hines#26,113howdy#26,116gable#26,093Indus#26,126

Similar misspelling depth

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

gags6 variantsEarle6 variantsKyiv6 variantsDobbs6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list