Ouija
/ˈwiːd͡ʒə/
"ouija" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Ouija” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #39,945 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #39,945
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 5
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A board, having letters of the alphabet and the words yes and no; used with a planchette during a seance to "communicate" with spirits.
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 | Ouija |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈwiːd͡ʒə/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #39,945 |
| Misspellings tracked | 5 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Ouija” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Ouija is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈwiːd͡ʒə/. Corpus data places it at rank #39,945 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 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 Ouija, with forms such as "oiuja", "ouiaj", and "ouijja". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "outta", "oui", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: The popular belief that the word came from French oui (“yes”) + German ja (“yes”) is a misconception. The name is taken from a word spelled out on the board when it was asked to name itself by Helen Peters, sister-in-law of Kennard Company investor Elijah B… The correct English form is Ouija, spelled O-U-I-J-A.
Definition
- 1A board, having letters of the alphabet and the words yes and no; used with a planchette during a seance to "communicate" with spirits.
- 2The use of such a board to attempt to communicate with spirits.
Etymology
The popular belief that the word came from French oui (“yes”) + German ja (“yes”) is a misconception. The name is taken from a word spelled out on the board when it was asked to name itself by Helen Peters, sister-in-law of Kennard Company investor Elijah Bond. It is noted in personal letters that Ouija was the name of a woman in a painting above her head at the time, who it is speculated may have in fact been Ouida.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: oiuja,ouiaj,ouijja,oujia,uoija
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Ouija - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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 "Ouija"?
What does "Ouija" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "Ouija"?
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Using “Ouija”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is O-U-I-J-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈwiːd͡ʒə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “outta” - see the side-by-side comparison. Ouija vs outta
- 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.