lobe

/ləʊb/

//ləʊb// noun

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

"lobe" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“lobe” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #19,635) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#19,635
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any projection or division, especially one of a somewhat rounded form.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lobe · lobe · English

lobe · rank #19,635 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #19,635
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH leafy

Nearest frequency peer: leafy (-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.

Frequency neighbours of confusable “lobe”

Peers at similar corpus weight, separate from look-alike pairs below

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “lobe” against nearest ranked English headwords, not a reprint of the confusable-pair desk.

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).

lobe vs lot
50% similar
lobe vs low
50% similar
lobe vs lol
50% similar

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

Key facts for lobe
PropertyValue
Headwordlobe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ləʊb/
Letters4
Frequency rank#19,635
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “lobe”

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).lobelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “leafy” (#19,634), “loo” (#19,636), “latte” (#19,633). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lobe” is #19,635. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for lobe is neighbouring look-alikes ("lot", "low", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /ləʊb/. Frequency #19,635 among 2,297 “L” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for lobe, with forms such as "lboe", "llobe", and "lobbe". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "lot", "low", "lol", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French lobe in early 16th century, from New Latin lobus (“a lobe”), from Ancient Greek λοβός (lobós, “the lobe of the ear or of the liver, the pod of a leguminous plant”). The correct English form is lobe, spelled L-O-B-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any projection or division, especially one of a somewhat rounded form.
  2. 2
    A clear division of an organ that can be determined at the gross anatomy level, especially one of the parts of the brain, liver or lung.
  3. 3
    A semicircular pattern left on the ice as the skater travels across it.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. A lobe of lava was crawling down the side of the volcano.
  2. He then broke the kola nut and threw one of the lobes on the ground for the ancestors.

Etymology

From Middle French lobe in early 16th century, from New Latin lobus (“a lobe”), from Ancient Greek λοβός (lobós, “the lobe of the ear or of the liver, the pod of a leguminous plant”).

Synonyms

lobe

This word in other languages

lóbulo(Español)lobe(Français)Vorsprung(Deutsch)lobo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • lboe
  • llobe
  • lobbe
  • olbe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of lobe - 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.

lboe2llobe1lobbe1olbe2
Edit distance from "lobe"

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 "lobe"?
"lobe" is spelled L-O-B-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ləʊb/.
What does "lobe" mean?
As a noun, "lobe" means: Any projection or division, especially one of a somewhat rounded form.
What words are commonly confused with "lobe"?
"lobe" is commonly confused with "lot", "low", "lol". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "lobe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lobe" is /ləʊb/. 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 "lobe"?
From Middle French lobe in early 16th century, from New Latin lobus (“a lobe”), from Ancient Greek λοβός (lobós, “the lobe of the ear or of the liver, the pod of a leguminous plant”). 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 "lobe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Lyle#19,638maga#19,639nods#19,646peat#19,657

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list