Honshu

/ˈhɑnʃu/

//ˈhɑnʃu// name

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

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

The verdict

“Honshu” is uncommon English (frequency #63,685 among 23,837 “H” headwords), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#63,685
frequency rank, English
23,837
“H” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The main island of the archipelago of Japan.

Key facts for Honshu
PropertyValue
HeadwordHonshu
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈhɑnʃu/
Letters6
Frequency rank#63,685
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Honshu” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Honshu is uncommon English at frequency #63,685 among 23,837 “H” headwords, classed as aproper noun, transcribed /ˈhɑnʃu/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The main island of the archipelago of Japan.".

Honshu doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Japanese 本(ほん)州(しゅう) (Honshū, “main island”), from Middle Chinese 本 (pwón, “main”) + 州 (t͡ʃjuw, “province”). The correct English form is Honshu, spelled H-O-N-S-H-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    The main island of the archipelago of Japan.

Etymology

From Japanese 本(ほん)州(しゅう) (Honshū, “main island”), from Middle Chinese 本 (pwón, “main”) + 州 (t͡ʃjuw, “province”).

Synonyms

Niphon

This word in other languages

Honshū(Français)Honshū(Deutsch)

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 "Honshu"?
"Honshu" is spelled H-O-N-S-H-U. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhɑnʃu/.
What does "Honshu" mean?
As a proper noun, "Honshu" means: The main island of the archipelago of Japan.
How do you pronounce "Honshu"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Honshu" is /ˈhɑnʃu/. 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 "Honshu"?
From Japanese 本(ほん)州(しゅう) (Honshū, “main island”), from Middle Chinese 本 (pwón, “main”) + 州 (t͡ʃjuw, “province”). 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.

Using “Honshu”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is H-O-N-S-H-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈhɑnʃu/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list