mahalo

/ˈmɑˌhɑloʊ/

//ˈmɑˌhɑloʊ// intj

"mahalo" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mahalo” is uncommon English (frequency #67,616 among 4,057 “M” headwords), classed as an interjection. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#67,616
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - thank you

Corpus desk

Index EN-mahalo · mahalo · English

mahalo · rank #67,616 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #67,616
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH Magnitsky

Nearest frequency peer: Magnitsky (-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 “mahalo”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for mahalo
PropertyValue
Headwordmahalo
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechInterjection
IPA/ˈmɑˌhɑloʊ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#67,616
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “mahalo” in English

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).mahalofalls 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: “Magnitsky” (#67,615), “magnetometer” (#67,614), “Mafioso” (#67,613). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “mahalo” is #67,616. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

mahalo is uncommon English at frequency #67,616 among 4,057 “M” headwords, classed as aninterjection, transcribed /ˈmɑˌhɑloʊ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "thank you".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for mahalo, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Hawaiian mahalo, from Proto-Eastern Polynesian *masalo. The correct English form is mahalo, spelled M-A-H-A-L-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    thank you

Etymology

From Hawaiian mahalo, from Proto-Eastern Polynesian *masalo.

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 "mahalo"?
"mahalo" is spelled M-A-H-A-L-O. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɑˌhɑloʊ/.
What does "mahalo" mean?
As an interjection, "mahalo" means: thank you
How do you pronounce "mahalo"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mahalo" is /ˈmɑˌhɑloʊ/. 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 "mahalo"?
From Hawaiian mahalo, from Proto-Eastern Polynesian *masalo. 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 "mahalo", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list