hamburger

/ˈhæmˌbɜː.ɡə/

//ˈhæmˌbɜː.ɡə// noun

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

"hamburger" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“hamburger” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,040. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,040
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A hot sandwich consisting of a patty of cooked ground beef or a meat substitute, in a sliced bun, usually also containing salad vegetables, condiments, or both.

Corpus desk

Index EN-hamburger · hamburger · English

hamburger · rank #16,040 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #16,040
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH hacks

Nearest frequency peer: hacks (-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 “hamburger”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “hamburger” 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).

hamburger vs Hamburg
67% similar

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

Key facts for hamburger
PropertyValue
Headwordhamburger
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈhæmˌbɜː.ɡə/
Letters9
Frequency rank#16,040
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “hamburger”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).hamburgerlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “hacks” (#16,039), “heed” (#16,041), “grooming” (#16,038). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “hamburger” is #16,040. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around hamburger (IPA /ˈhæmˌbɜː.ɡə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #16,040 among 2,646 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for hamburger, with forms such as "ahmburger", "habmurger", and "hambburger". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Hamburg", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Shortening of Hamburger sandwich, Hamburger steak, etc.; or, less likely, borrowed from German Hamburger (“native of Hamburg”), equivalent to Hamburg + -er. The correct English form is hamburger, spelled H-A-M-B-U-R-G-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A hot sandwich consisting of a patty of cooked ground beef or a meat substitute, in a sliced bun, usually also containing salad vegetables, condiments, or both.
  2. 2
    The patty used in such a sandwich.
  3. 3
    Ground beef, especially that intended to be made into hamburgers.
  4. 4
    An animal or human, or the flesh thereof, that has been badly injured as a result of an accident or conflict.
  5. 5
    Ellipsis of hamburger button.
  6. 6
    Describing the shape of a rectangular piece of paper folded in half so that it forms a short rectangle.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The truck hit the deer and turned it into hamburger.
  2. I'm going to make you into hamburger if you do that again.

Etymology

Shortening of Hamburger sandwich, Hamburger steak, etc.; or, less likely, borrowed from German Hamburger (“native of Hamburg”), equivalent to Hamburg + -er.

Synonyms

liberty sandwichbeefburgerhamburger patty

This word in other languages

hamburguesa(Español)hamburger(Français)Hamburger(Deutsch)hamburger(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ahmburger
  • habmurger
  • hambburger
  • hambruger
  • hambugrer
  • hamburegr
  • hamburgerr
  • hamburgger
  • hamburgre
  • hamburrger
  • hammburger
  • hamubrger
  • hhamburger
  • hmaburger

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ahmburger2habmurger2hambburger1hambruger2hambugrer2hamburegr2hamburgerr1hamburgger1
Edit distance from "hamburger"

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 "hamburger"?
"hamburger" is spelled H-A-M-B-U-R-G-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhæmˌbɜː.ɡə/.
What does "hamburger" mean?
As a noun, "hamburger" means: A hot sandwich consisting of a patty of cooked ground beef or a meat substitute, in a sliced bun, usually also containing salad vegetables, condiments, or both.
What words are commonly confused with "hamburger"?
"hamburger" is commonly confused with "Hamburg". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hamburger"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hamburger" is /ˈhæmˌbɜː.ɡə/. 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 "hamburger"?
Shortening of Hamburger sandwich, Hamburger steak, etc.; or, less likely, borrowed from German Hamburger (“native of Hamburg”), equivalent to Hamburg + -er. 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 "hamburger", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

imperfect#16,048entrusted#16,017liquidity#16,063endeavour#16,014

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

depiction14 variantsnostalgic14 variantsrendition14 variantsstatistic14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list