hookah

/ˈhʊ.kə/

//ˈhʊ.kə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“hookah” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #36,605. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#36,605
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A pipe with a long flexible tube that draws the smoke through water, traditionally used for smoking tobacco, which is often flavored.

Corpus desk

Index EN-hookah · hookah · English

hookah · rank #36,605 · 8 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #36,605
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH hse

Nearest frequency peer: hse (+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 “hookah”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “hookah” 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).

hookah vs hooks
67% similar
hookah vs hooked
67% similar
hookah vs hooker
67% similar

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

Key facts for hookah
PropertyValue
Headwordhookah
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈhʊ.kə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#36,605
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “hookah”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “hse” (#36,606), “Hibbert” (#36,602), “humpback” (#36,608). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “hookah” is #36,605. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around hookah (IPA /ˈhʊ.kə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #36,605 among 2,646 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

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

  1. 1
    A pipe with a long flexible tube that draws the smoke through water, traditionally used for smoking tobacco, which is often flavored.
  2. 2
    A tankless surface air compressor pump and umbilical piping system that supplies air to a diving mask.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. In India, the lower orders use a hookah or hubble bubble, which is made of a cocoa-nut shell well cleaned out, having a hole through the soft eye of the shell, and another on the opposite side, a little lower down, the first of which is used for the chauffoir, and the other to suck or draw the smoke from.
  2. Our new acquaintance very deliberately coiled up the tube of his hookah, and produced from behind a curtain a very long befrogged topcoat with Astrakhan collar and cuffs.

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

narguile(Español)houka(Français)Wasserpfeife(Deutsch)narguilé(Português)

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.

hhookah1hokah1hokoah2hooakh2hookahh1hookha2hookkah1ohokah2
Edit distance from "hookah"

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"?
"hookah" is spelled H-O-O-K-A-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhʊ.kə/.
What does "hookah" mean?
As a noun, "hookah" means: A pipe with a long flexible tube that draws the smoke through water, traditionally used for smoking tobacco, which is often flavored.
What words are commonly confused with "hookah"?
"hookah" is commonly confused with "hooks", "hooked", "hooker". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hookah"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hookah" is /ˈhʊ.kə/. 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 "hookah"?
Borrowed from Hindustani حقہ / हुक़्क़ा (huqqā) and, in turn, derived from Arabic حُقَّة (ḥuqqa, “pot, jar”), from حُقّ (ḥuqq, “cavity, hollow”). 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 "hookah", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

jumble#36,624Kagawa#36,627girdle#36,581Krause#36,634

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Giselle8 variantsKrebs8 variantsFuchs8 variantsfjord8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list