kebab

/kəˈbæb/

//kəˈbæb// noun

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

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

The verdict

“kebab” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #27,896. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#27,896
frequency rank, English
1,236
“K” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A dish of pieces of meat, fish, or vegetables roasted on a skewer or spit, especially a doner kebab.

Corpus desk

Index EN-kebab · kebab · English

kebab · rank #27,896 · 7 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #27,896
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,236
  • PHOTO-FINISH Karin

Nearest frequency peer: Karin (-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 “kebab”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “kebab” 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).

kebab vs kerb
60% similar

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

Key facts for kebab
PropertyValue
Headwordkebab
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kəˈbæb/
Letters5
Frequency rank#27,896
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “kebab”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).kebablands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Karin” (#27,895), “juncture” (#27,894), “Lampard” (#27,898). Among 1,236 “K” headwords, “kebab” is #27,896. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around kebab (IPA /kəˈbæb/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #27,896 among 1,236 “K” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for kebab, with forms such as "ekbab", "kbeab", and "keabb". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "kerb", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Arabic كَبَاب (kabāb), partly through Urdu, Persian and Turkish kebap. Doublet of cevapi. See the Arabic entry for more. The correct English form is kebab, spelled K-E-B-A-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    A dish of pieces of meat, fish, or vegetables roasted on a skewer or spit, especially a doner kebab.
  2. 2
    A hand-held dish consisting of pieces of meat roasted on an upright skewer mixed with fresh vegetables and sauces and rolled up in a round piece of unleavened bread.
  3. 3
    A shish kebab or any other food on a skewer.
  4. 4
    A restaurant that sells kebabs
  5. 5
    The outward growing portions of a shish kebab structure.
  6. 6
    A Muslim, usually of southern European, Middle Eastern, or North African descent.
  7. 7
    The vulva.
  8. 8
    A menu icon of three vertical dots.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Let's go to the kebab after the club.

Etymology

From Arabic كَبَاب (kabāb), partly through Urdu, Persian and Turkish kebap. Doublet of cevapi. See the Arabic entry for more.

This word in other languages

kebab(Español)kebab(Français)Kebab(Deutsch)kebab(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ekbab
  • kbeab
  • keabb
  • kebabb
  • kebba
  • kebbab
  • kkebab

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of kebab - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ekbab2kbeab2keabb2kebabb1kebba2kebbab1kkebab1
Edit distance from "kebab"

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 "kebab"?
"kebab" is spelled K-E-B-A-B. The IPA pronunciation is /kəˈbæb/.
What does "kebab" mean?
As a noun, "kebab" means: A dish of pieces of meat, fish, or vegetables roasted on a skewer or spit, especially a doner kebab.
What words are commonly confused with "kebab"?
"kebab" is commonly confused with "kerb". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "kebab"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "kebab" is /kəˈbæb/. 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 "kebab"?
From Arabic كَبَاب (kabāb), partly through Urdu, Persian and Turkish kebap. Doublet of cevapi. See the Arabic entry for more. 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 "kebab", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Karin#27,895Margo#27,916erode#27,829Dunne#27,820

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

gallop7 variantsDavos7 variantsrondo7 variantsSaban7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list