knob
/nɒb/
"knob" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“knob” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #15,203 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #15,203
- frequency rank, English
- 4
- letters
- 6
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A rounded protuberance, especially one arising from a flat surface; a fleshy lump or caruncle.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | knob |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /nɒb/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Frequency rank | #15,203 |
| Misspellings tracked | 6 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “knob” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for knob is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /nɒb/. Corpus data places it at rank #15,203 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 14 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for knob, with forms such as "kknob", "knbo", and "knnob". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ko", "Koh", "koi", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English knobbe, from Middle Low German knobbe (“knob, knot in wood, bud”), probably ultimately from a variant of Proto-Germanic *knappô (“knob, lump”), one of several kn- words related to *knudaną (“to knead”). Compare Middle Dutch knobbe, cnopp… The correct English form is knob, spelled K-N-O-B.
Definition
- 1A rounded protuberance, especially one arising from a flat surface; a fleshy lump or caruncle.
- 2A rounded control switch that can be turned on its axis, designed to be operated by the fingers.
- 3A ball-shaped part of a handle, lever, etc., designed to be grabbed by the hand.
- 4A rounded ornament on the hilt of an edged weapon; a pommel.
- 5A prominent, rounded bump along a mountain ridge.
- 6A prominent rounded hill.
- 7A woman's breast.
- 8The penis; dick.
- 9The penis; dick.
- 10The clitoris.
- 11A dollop, an amount just larger than a spoonful (usually referring to butter).
- 12A chunky branch-like piece, especially of a ginger rhizome.
- 13A bulb of the garlic plant consisting of multiple cloves.
- 14A freshman at The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina.
Etymology
From Middle English knobbe, from Middle Low German knobbe (“knob, knot in wood, bud”), probably ultimately from a variant of Proto-Germanic *knappô (“knob, lump”), one of several kn- words related to *knudaną (“to knead”). Compare Middle Dutch knobbe, cnoppe, Middle Low German knobbe (“knob, knot in wood”), knubbe, Dutch knop (“knob, button, bud”), Old Frisian knopp, knapp, Old High German knopf (“bud, pommel of a sword, knot, loop”), Middle High German knospe, German Knopf (“button, knob”), Knospe (“bud”), Danish knap (“button”), knop (“knob, button, bud”), Faroese knappur (“button”), Icelandic hnappur (“button”), Norn knapp (“round button”), knubbi (“potato”), snapp (“knob, round top”), Norwegian and Swedish knapp (“button”), Norwegian knopp (“bud”), Swedish knopp (“bud, knob”), Finnish nappi (“button, knob”), nuppi (“knob, pommel”), Old Norse knyfill (“short horn”). Also compare Middle English knap, knappe (“small projection, knob (button, tassel, tuft, etc.), hill, hilltop, etc.)”), from Old English cnæp, cnæpp (“summit, top”), which is possibly related to Old Norse knappr (“small projection, knob (button, head of a stick, etc.)”) (whence English knop), from Proto-Germanic *knappô (“knob, lump”), *knuppô (“lump, clod”). Cognate with Dutch knob, knobbel (“knob”), German Knubbe, Knubbel (“knob”). See also knop. For the sense of a rounded hill, see nab and knab.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: kknob,knbo,knnob,knobb,konb,nkob
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of knob - 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.
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
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Using “knob”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is K-N-O-B - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /nɒb/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “ko” - see the side-by-side comparison. knob vs ko
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.