kir

noun

"kir" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“kir” is uncommon English (frequency #71,633 among 9,255 “K” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,633
frequency rank, English
9,255
“K” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A cocktail made with a measure of crème de cassis topped up with white wine.

Key facts for kir
PropertyValue
Headwordkir
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters3
Frequency rank#71,633
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “kir” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

kir is uncommon English at frequency #71,633 among 9,255 “K” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A cocktail made with a measure of crème de cassis topped up with white wine.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for kir, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French kir, named after Félix Kir, mayor of Dijon. The correct English form is kir, spelled K-I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A cocktail made with a measure of crème de cassis topped up with white wine.

Etymology

Borrowed from French kir, named after Félix Kir, mayor of Dijon.

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 "kir"?
"kir" is spelled K-I-R.
What does "kir" mean?
As a noun, "kir" means: A cocktail made with a measure of crème de cassis topped up with white wine.
What is the origin of the word "kir"?
Borrowed from French kir, named after Félix Kir, mayor of Dijon. 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.

Using “kir”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is K-I-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list