hobo

/ˈhəʊ.bəʊ/

//ˈhəʊ.bəʊ// noun

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

"hobo" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“hobo” has 5 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,114. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,114
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A wandering homeless person, especially (historical) one illegally travelling by rail or (derogatory) a penniless, unemployed bum.

Corpus desk

Index EN-hobo · hobo · English

hobo · rank #26,114 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,114
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH Hines

Nearest frequency peer: Hines (-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 “hobo”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “hobo” 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).

hobo vs how
50% similar
hobo vs hot
50% similar
hobo vs hop
50% similar

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

Key facts for hobo
PropertyValue
Headwordhobo
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈhəʊ.bəʊ/
Letters4
Frequency rank#26,114
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “hobo”

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).hobolands 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 “Hines” (#26,113), “housework” (#26,115), “hilltop” (#26,112). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “hobo” is #26,114. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 5 spelling variants around hobo (IPA /ˈhəʊ.bəʊ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #26,114 among 2,646 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for hobo, with forms such as "hboo", "hhobo", and "hobbo". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "how", "hot", "hop", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Unknown. Possibly a contraction of ho, boy or the dialectal English term hawbuck (“lout, clumsy fellow, country bumpkin”). The correct English form is hobo, spelled H-O-B-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    A wandering homeless person, especially (historical) one illegally travelling by rail or (derogatory) a penniless, unemployed bum.
  2. 2
    Any migratory laborer, whether homeless or not.
  3. 3
    A kind of large handbag.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He’d heard the word hobo used for travelers, heard it was short for homeward bound, or homeless boy, or Hoboken having something to do with New Jersey.
  2. Avoid bulky styles such as duffle sacks, buckets, doctors' satchels, and hobos.

Etymology

Unknown. Possibly a contraction of ho, boy or the dialectal English term hawbuck (“lout, clumsy fellow, country bumpkin”).

This word in other languages

vagabundo(Español)vagabond(Français)Obdachloser(Deutsch)mendigo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hboo
  • hhobo
  • hobbo
  • hoob
  • ohbo

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

hboo2hhobo1hobbo1hoob2ohbo2
Edit distance from "hobo"

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 "hobo"?
"hobo" is spelled H-O-B-O. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhəʊ.bəʊ/.
What does "hobo" mean?
As a noun, "hobo" means: A wandering homeless person, especially (historical) one illegally travelling by rail or (derogatory) a penniless, unemployed bum.
What words are commonly confused with "hobo"?
"hobo" is commonly confused with "how", "hot", "hop". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hobo"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hobo" is /ˈhəʊ.bəʊ/. 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 "hobo"?
Unknown. Possibly a contraction of ho, boy or the dialectal English term hawbuck (“lout, clumsy fellow, country bumpkin”). 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 "hobo", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

HSBC#26,118IMAX#26,123gags#26,094jive#26,135

Similar misspelling depth

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

Kaye5 variantskiki5 variantsmite5 variantsdada5 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list