harem
/ˈhɑːɹəm/
"harem" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“harem” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #24,467 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #24,467
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The private section of a Muslim household forbidden to male strangers.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | harem |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈhɑːɹəm/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #24,467 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “harem” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for harem is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈhɑːɹəm/. Corpus data places it at rank #24,467 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 6 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 harem, with forms such as "ahrem", "haerm", and "haremm". 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, "hem", "hrm", "have", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish حرم (harem) Turkish harem, from Arabic حَرَم (ḥaram, “something prohibited; sanctuary, women”); and later also from حَرِيم (ḥarīm) with same meaning, both from حَرُمَ (ḥaruma, “be forbidden or unlawful”). Doublet of haram and h… The correct English form is harem, spelled H-A-R-E-M.
Definition
- 1The private section of a Muslim household forbidden to male strangers.
- 2A group of someone's girlfriends, wives and/or concubines in a polygamous household.
- 3A group of female animals (cows) herded and controlled by a male animal (bull) of that species for breeding purposes. Such behaviour is exhibited by bovids including cattle and buffalo as well as moose, elephants, seals (including elephant seals), sea lions, and baboons.
- 4A group of female birds mated to or associated with a breeding male.
- 5Any significant number of women together as a group; a bevy.
- 6A genre of anime and manga in which a man is the love interest of three or more women.
Etymology
Borrowed from Ottoman Turkish حرم (harem) Turkish harem, from Arabic حَرَم (ḥaram, “something prohibited; sanctuary, women”); and later also from حَرِيم (ḥarīm) with same meaning, both from حَرُمَ (ḥaruma, “be forbidden or unlawful”). Doublet of haram and herem.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ahrem,haerm,haremm,harme,harrem,hharem,hraem
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of harem - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "harem"?
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Using “harem”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is H-A-R-E-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈhɑːɹəm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “hem” - see the side-by-side comparison. harem vs hem
- 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.