Istanbul
/ɪ.stænˈbʊl/
"istanbul" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Istanbul” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #10,563. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #10,563
- frequency rank, English
- 17,902
- “I” headwords
- 12
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A Turkish city, and the largest European city by population, which was the last capital of the Ottoman Empire and the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Istanbul |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ɪ.stænˈbʊl/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #10,563 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Istanbul” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 12 spelling variants around Istanbul (IPA /ɪ.stænˈbʊl/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #10,563 among 17,902 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for Istanbul, with forms such as "isatnbul", "isstanbul", and "istabnul". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Turkish İstanbul, from Ottoman Turkish استانبول (İstanbul), a corruption of Byzantine Greek εἰς τὴν Πόλιν (eis tḕn Pólin, “to the City”), which is how Constantinople was referred to by the local Greeks. The correct English form is Istanbul, spelled I-S-T-A-N-B-U-L.
Definition
- 1A Turkish city, and the largest European city by population, which was the last capital of the Ottoman Empire and the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire).
- 2A province in Turkey.
Etymology
From Turkish İstanbul, from Ottoman Turkish استانبول (İstanbul), a corruption of Byzantine Greek εἰς τὴν Πόλιν (eis tḕn Pólin, “to the City”), which is how Constantinople was referred to by the local Greeks.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- isatnbul
- isstanbul
- istabnul
- istanbbul
- istanblu
- istanbull
- istannbul
- istanubl
- istnabul
- isttanbul
- itsanbul
- sitanbul
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Istanbul - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "Istanbul"?
What does "Istanbul" mean?
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What is the origin of the word "Istanbul"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “Istanbul”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is I-S-T-A-N-B-U-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪ.stænˈbʊl/ (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
Same frequency band
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.