milkshake

/ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk/

//ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk// noun

Detailed reference entry for the English word "milkshake", 9-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Wiktionary, and usage frequency ranked against an open word-frequency list covering the top 100,000 English words. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "milkshake" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "milkshake" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

The verdict

“milkshake” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #27,933 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#27,933
frequency rank, English
9
letters
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) — A thick beverage consisting of milk and ice cream mixed together, often with fruit, chocolate, or other flavoring.

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Key facts for milkshake
PropertyValue
Headwordmilkshake
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk/
Letters9
Frequency rank#27,933
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “milkshake” 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). milkshake lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for milkshake is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk/. Corpus data places it at rank #27,933 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for milkshake, with forms such as "imlkshake", "miklshake", and "milkhsake". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From milk + shake. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is milkshake, spelled M-I-L-K-S-H-A-K-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A thick beverage consisting of milk and ice cream mixed together, often with fruit, chocolate, or other flavoring.
  2. 2
    A thin beverage, similar to the above, but with no ice cream or significantly less of it.
  3. 3
    A beverage consisting of fruit juice, water, and some milk, as served in Southeast Asia.
  4. 4
    Accidental emulsion of oil and water in an engine.
  5. 5
    An alkaline supplement administered to a horse to improve its racing performance.

Etymology

From milk + shake.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: imlkshake,miklshake,milkhsake,milkkshake,milksahke,milkshaek,milkshakke,milkshhake,milkshkae,milksshake,millkshake,milskhake,mlikshake,mmilkshake

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of milkshake - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

Edit distance from "milkshake"

imlkshake2miklshake2milkhsake2milkkshake1milksahke2milkshaek2milkshakke1milkshhake1
Edit distance from "milkshake"

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.

Cite this page

Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY-SA). Copy the citation:

PlainSpell, “milkshake, English word data” (May 6, 2026). Derived from Wiktionary (kaikki.org, CC BY-SA) and an open word-frequency list. https://plainspell.com/en/word/milkshake

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "milkshake"?
"milkshake" is spelled M-I-L-K-S-H-A-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk/.
What does "milkshake" mean?
As a noun, "milkshake" means: A thick beverage consisting of milk and ice cream mixed together, often with fruit, chocolate, or other flavoring.
What are common misspellings of "milkshake"?
Common misspellings include "imlkshake", "miklshake", "milkhsake", "milkkshake", "milksahke". The correct spelling is "milkshake".
How do you pronounce "milkshake"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "milkshake" is /ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk/. 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 "milkshake"?
From milk + shake. 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 “milkshake”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is M-I-L-K-S-H-A-K-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈmɪlk.ʃeɪk/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter M in our English index:

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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