plumb

/plʌm/

//plʌm// noun

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

"plumb" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“plumb” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #32,124. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#32,124
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
15
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A little mass of lead, or the like, attached to a line, and used by builders, etc., to indicate a vertical direction.

Corpus desk

Index EN-plumb · plumb · English

plumb · rank #32,124 · 8 variants · 15 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #32,124
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-MID 15 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH playmaker

Nearest frequency peer: playmaker (-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 “plumb”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “plumb” 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).

plumb vs pub
60% similar
plumb vs plus
60% similar
plumb vs pump
60% similar

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

Key facts for plumb
PropertyValue
Headwordplumb
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/plʌm/
Letters5
Frequency rank#32,124
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs15
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “plumb”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).plumblands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “playmaker” (#32,123), “plumes” (#32,125), “plano” (#32,122). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “plumb” is #32,124. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around plumb (IPA /plʌm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #32,124 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for plumb, with forms such as "lpumb", "pllumb", and "plmub". 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 15 confusable-pair relationships, "pub", "plus", "pump", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English plumbe, plumme, from Old French *plombe, from Latin plumba, plural of plumbum. The correct English form is plumb, spelled P-L-U-M-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    A little mass of lead, or the like, attached to a line, and used by builders, etc., to indicate a vertical direction.
  2. 2
    A weight on the end of a long line, used by sailors to determine the depth of water.
  3. 3
    The perpendicular direction or position.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Customers turned away from rickety chairs, stands of drawers that refused to open, or had no handles, lop-sided wardrobes whose doors were out of plumb or whose mirrors were cracked.

Etymology

From Middle English plumbe, plumme, from Old French *plombe, from Latin plumba, plural of plumbum.

Synonyms

plummetplumb bobplumb line

This word in other languages

plomada(Español)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • lpumb
  • pllumb
  • plmub
  • plubm
  • plumbb
  • plummb
  • pplumb
  • pulmb

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

lpumb2pllumb1plmub2plubm2plumbb1plummb1pplumb1pulmb2
Edit distance from "plumb"

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 "plumb"?
"plumb" is spelled P-L-U-M-B. The IPA pronunciation is /plʌm/.
What does "plumb" mean?
As a noun, "plumb" means: A little mass of lead, or the like, attached to a line, and used by builders, etc., to indicate a vertical direction.
What words are commonly confused with "plumb"?
"plumb" is commonly confused with "pub", "plus", "pump". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "plumb"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "plumb" is /plʌm/. 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 "plumb"?
From Middle English plumbe, plumme, from Old French *plombe, from Latin plumba, plural of plumbum. 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 "plumb", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

plano#32,122pokes#32,127porta#32,128posey#32,129

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

pained8 variantsonsite8 variantsMonika8 variantslapses8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list