opal

/ˈəʊpəl/

//ˈəʊpəl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“opal” has 5 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #22,458. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#22,458
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity, of the chemical formula SiO₂·nH₂O.

Corpus desk

Index EN-opal · opal · English

opal · rank #22,458 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #22,458
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH onslaught

Nearest frequency peer: onslaught (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “opal”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “opal” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

opal vs opt
50% similar
opal vs owl
50% similar
opal vs ops
50% similar

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

Key facts for opal
PropertyValue
Headwordopal
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈəʊpəl/
Letters4
Frequency rank#22,458
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “opal”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).opallands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “onslaught” (#22,457), “Okinawa” (#22,456), “organisational” (#22,460). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “opal” is #22,458. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 5 spelling variants around opal (IPA /ˈəʊpəl/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #22,458 among 1,431 “O” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for opal, with forms such as "oapl", "opall", and "opla". 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 also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "opt", "owl", "ops", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: In Florio’s A World of Words 1598 as opale, from French opale, from Latin opalus, from Byzantine Greek ὀπάλλιος (opállios), from Sanskrit उपल (upala, “gem, stone”), from उपरि (upári, “the upper millstone”). Distantly related to over. The correct English form is opal, spelled O-P-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity, of the chemical formula SiO₂·nH₂O.
  2. 2
    A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity, of the chemical formula SiO₂·nH₂O.
  3. 3
    The colour of opal: any shade of blue with bright flecks of other colours, such as white, yellow, and red.
  4. 4
    A colloquial name used in molecular biology referring to a particular stop codon sequence, "UGA."
  5. 5
    Any of various lycaenid butterflies of the genus Nesolycaena.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Although there are dozens of different types of gems, among the best known and most important are […] . (Common gem materials not addressed in this article include amber, amethyst, chalcedony, garnet, lazurite, malachite, opals, peridot, rhodonite, spinel, tourmaline, turquoise and zircon.)
  2. The witchery of the dawn turned the grey river-reaches to purple, gold, and opal; and it was as though the lumbering dhoni crept across the splendors of a new heaven.

Etymology

In Florio’s A World of Words 1598 as opale, from French opale, from Latin opalus, from Byzantine Greek ὀπάλλιος (opállios), from Sanskrit उपल (upala, “gem, stone”), from उपरि (upári, “the upper millstone”). Distantly related to over.

This word in other languages

ópalo(Español)opale(Français)Opal(Deutsch)opala(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • oapl
  • opall
  • opla
  • oppal
  • poal

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

oapl2opall1opla2oppal1poal2
Edit distance from "opal"

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 "opal"?
"opal" is spelled O-P-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈəʊpəl/.
What does "opal" mean?
As a noun, "opal" means: A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity, of the chemical formula SiO₂·nH₂O.
What words are commonly confused with "opal"?
"opal" is commonly confused with "opt", "owl", "ops". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "opal"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "opal" is /ˈəʊpəl/. 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 "opal"?
In Florio’s A World of Words 1598 as opale, from French opale, from Latin opalus, from Byzantine Greek ὀπάλλιος (opállios), from Sanskrit उपल (upala, “gem, stone”), from उपरि (upári, “the upper millstone”). Distantly related to over. 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 "opal", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

mRNA#22,446Lyme#22,428lien#22,422rung#22,497

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (5 here; floor ≥5).

lotta5 variantsComo5 variantsBragg5 variantsCebu5 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list