hookah
/ˈhʊ.kə/
"hookah" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“hookah” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #36,605 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #36,605
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 8
- tracked misspellings
- 7
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A pipe with a long flexible tube that draws the smoke through water, traditionally used for smoking tobacco, which is often flavored.
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 | hookah |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈhʊ.kə/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #36,605 |
| Misspellings tracked | 8 |
| Confusable pairs | 7 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “hookah” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for hookah is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈhʊ.kə/. Corpus data places it at rank #36,605 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for hookah, with forms such as "hhookah", "hokah", and "hokoah". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "hooks", "hooked", "hooker", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Hindustani حقہ / हुक़्क़ा (huqqā) and, in turn, derived from Arabic حُقَّة (ḥuqqa, “pot, jar”), from حُقّ (ḥuqq, “cavity, hollow”). The correct English form is hookah, spelled H-O-O-K-A-H.
Definition
- 1A pipe with a long flexible tube that draws the smoke through water, traditionally used for smoking tobacco, which is often flavored.
- 2A tankless surface air compressor pump and umbilical piping system that supplies air to a diving mask.
Etymology
Borrowed from Hindustani حقہ / हुक़्क़ा (huqqā) and, in turn, derived from Arabic حُقَّة (ḥuqqa, “pot, jar”), from حُقّ (ḥuqq, “cavity, hollow”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: hhookah,hokah,hokoah,hooakh,hookahh,hookha,hookkah,ohokah
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of hookah - 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.
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 "hookah"?
What does "hookah" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "hookah"?
How do you pronounce "hookah"?
What is the origin of the word "hookah"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “hookah”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is H-O-O-K-A-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈhʊ.kə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “hooks” - see the side-by-side comparison. hookah vs hooks
- 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.