jakes

/d͡ʒeɪks/

//d͡ʒeɪks// noun

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

"jakes" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“jakes” is uncommon English (frequency #52,422 among 796 “J” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#52,422
frequency rank, English
796
“J” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A place to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory.

Corpus desk

Index EN-jakes · jakes · English

jakes · rank #52,422 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #52,422
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 796
  • PHOTO-FINISH Jerez

Nearest frequency peer: Jerez (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “jakes”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “jakes” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for jakes
PropertyValue
Headwordjakes
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/d͡ʒeɪks/
Letters5
Frequency rank#52,422
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “jakes” in English

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).jakesfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “Jerez” (#52,423), “Jabari” (#52,420), “journaling” (#52,424). Among 796 “J” headwords, “jakes” is #52,422. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

jakes is uncommon English at frequency #52,422 among 796 “J” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /d͡ʒeɪks/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A place to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for jakes in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English Jake (variant of “Jack”) or Jakke (variant of “Jacques” and “Jack”). Use as a place to urinate and defecate first attested in the form jacques. Compare terms such as US slang Cousin John and Quincy, used as euphemistic personifications t… The correct English form is jakes, spelled J-A-K-E-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    A place to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. My lord, if you’ll give me leave, I will tread this unbolted villain into mortar and daub the walls of a jakes with him.
  2. […] Whereas the Truth-finder, having raked out that Jakes his own Mind, and being there capable of tracing no Ray of Divinity, nor any thing virtuous, or good, or lovely, or loving, very fairly, honestly, and logically concludes, that no such things exist in the whole Creation.

Etymology

From Middle English Jake (variant of “Jack”) or Jakke (variant of “Jacques” and “Jack”). Use as a place to urinate and defecate first attested in the form jacques. Compare terms such as US slang Cousin John and Quincy, used as euphemistic personifications the speaker was "visiting".

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 "jakes"?
"jakes" is spelled J-A-K-E-S. The IPA pronunciation is /d͡ʒeɪks/.
What does "jakes" mean?
As a noun, "jakes" means: A place to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory.
How do you pronounce "jakes"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "jakes" is /d͡ʒeɪks/. 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 "jakes"?
From Middle English Jake (variant of “Jack”) or Jakke (variant of “Jacques” and “Jack”). Use as a place to urinate and defecate first attested in the form jacques. Compare terms such as US slang Cousin John and Quincy, used as euphemistic personif... 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 "jakes", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Jerez#52,423Iwata#52,419Kacey#52,426Islay#52,415

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list