oar

/ɔː/

//ɔː// noun

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

"oar" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“oar” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #33,347) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#33,347
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - A type of lever used to propel a boat, having a flat blade at one end and a handle at the other, and pivoted in a rowlock atop the gunwale, whereby a rower seated in the boat and pulling the handle...

Corpus desk

Index EN-oar · oar · English

oar · rank #33,347 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #33,347
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH occidental

Nearest frequency peer: occidental (+2 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 neighbourhood for “oar”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “oar” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 2, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

oar vs of
33% similar
oar vs on
33% similar
oar vs or
67% similar

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

Key facts for oar
PropertyValue
Headwordoar
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɔː/
Letters3
Frequency rank#33,347
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “oar” 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). oar lands here:

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

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

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for oar is neighbouring look-alikes ("of", "on", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /ɔː/. Frequency #33,347 among 1,431 “O” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

No misspelling variants are generated for oar in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "of", "on", "or", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English ore (“oar”), from Old English ār, from Proto-West Germanic *airu, from Proto-Germanic *airō (“oar”). Cognate with Old Norse ár. The correct English form is oar, spelled O-A-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A type of lever used to propel a boat, having a flat blade at one end and a handle at the other, and pivoted in a rowlock atop the gunwale, whereby a rower seated in the boat and pulling the handle can pass the blade through the water by repeated strokes against the water's resistance, thus moving the boat.
  2. 2
    An oarsman; a rower.
  3. 3
    An oar-like swimming organ of various invertebrates.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The oar snaps in his hand Before he reaches dry land But the sound doesn't deafen his smile Just pokes at wet sand With an oar in his hand Floats off down the river Nile Floats off down the river Nile...
  2. He is a good oar.

Etymology

From Middle English ore (“oar”), from Old English ār, from Proto-West Germanic *airu, from Proto-Germanic *airō (“oar”). Cognate with Old Norse ár.

This word in other languages

remo(Español)rame(Français)Ruder(Deutsch)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "oar"?
"oar" is spelled O-A-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ɔː/.
What does "oar" mean?
As a noun, "oar" means: A type of lever used to propel a boat, having a flat blade at one end and a handle at the other, and pivoted in a rowlock atop the gunwale, whereby a rower seated in the boat and pulling the handle...
What words are commonly confused with "oar"?
"oar" is commonly confused with "of", "on", "or". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "oar"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "oar" is /ɔː/. 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 "oar"?
From Middle English ore (“oar”), from Old English ār, from Proto-West Germanic *airu, from Proto-Germanic *airō (“oar”). Cognate with Old Norse ár. 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 "oar", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

MI5#33,328LST#33,313Jem#33,296SbC#33,410
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