maul
/mɔːl/
"maul" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“maul” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #32,913 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #32,913
- frequency rank, English
- 4
- letters
- 5
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A heavy long-handled hammer, used for splitting logs by driving a wedge into them, or in combat.
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 | maul |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /mɔːl/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Frequency rank | #32,913 |
| Misspellings tracked | 5 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “maul” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for maul is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /mɔːl/. Corpus data places it at rank #32,913 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for maul, with forms such as "amul", "malu", and "maull". 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, "ML", "mu", "may", 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 English malle (“mace, maul”), from Anglo-Norman mail, from Old French mail, from Latin malleus (“hammer”). Doublet of malleus. The correct English form is maul, spelled M-A-U-L.
Definition
- 1A heavy long-handled hammer, used for splitting logs by driving a wedge into them, or in combat.
- 2A situation where the player carrying the ball, who must be on his feet, is held by one or more opponents, and one or more of the ball carrier's team mates bind onto the ball carrier.
- 3The fruit of the Washingtonia species.
Etymology
From Middle English malle (“mace, maul”), from Anglo-Norman mail, from Old French mail, from Latin malleus (“hammer”). Doublet of malleus.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: amul,malu,maull,mmaul,mual
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of maul - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "maul"?
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Using “maul”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-U-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /mɔːl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “ML” - see the side-by-side comparison. maul vs ML
- 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.