plumber

/ˈplʌm.ɚ/

//ˈplʌm.ɚ// noun

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

"plumber" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“plumber” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,160. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,160
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One who works in or with lead.

Corpus desk

Index EN-plumber · plumber · English

plumber · rank #18,160 · 11 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,160
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH plentiful

Nearest frequency peer: plentiful (-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 “plumber”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “plumber” 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).

plumber vs plume
71% similar
plumber vs plumes
71% similar
plumber vs plunder
71% similar

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

Key facts for plumber
PropertyValue
Headwordplumber
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈplʌm.ɚ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#18,160
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “plumber”

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).plumberlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “plentiful” (#18,159), “png” (#18,161), “pigeons” (#18,158). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “plumber” is #18,160. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around plumber (IPA /ˈplʌm.ɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #18,160 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for plumber, with forms such as "lpumber", "pllumber", and "plmuber". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "plume", "plumes", "plunder", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English plumber, from Old French plummier (French plombier); from Latin plumbārius, from plumbum (“lead or lead shot”). The verb sense “to botch” is perhaps from the negative stereotype of the occupation. The correct English form is plumber, spelled P-L-U-M-B-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who works in or with lead.
  2. 2
    One who furnishes, fits, and repairs pipes and other apparatus for the conveyance of water, gas, or drainage.
  3. 3
    A person who investigates or prevents leaks of information.
  4. 4
    In the Royal Navy, an apprentice, a boy aged 16 to 18, who is trained in technical skills at the Dockyard Schools to become an artificer.
  5. 5
    A urologist.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Hannah Spencer, a local plumber and Green party councillor, was elected as the party’s first MP in northern England after overturning Labour’s 13,000-vote majority.
  2. It involved the break-in of the office of Mr. Lewis Fielding, Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist, by the White House “plumbers.”

Etymology

From Middle English plumber, from Old French plummier (French plombier); from Latin plumbārius, from plumbum (“lead or lead shot”). The verb sense “to botch” is perhaps from the negative stereotype of the occupation.

This word in other languages

plomero(Español)plombeur(Français)Klempner(Deutsch)encanador(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • lpumber
  • pllumber
  • plmuber
  • plubmer
  • plumbber
  • plumberr
  • plumbre
  • plumebr
  • plummber
  • pplumber
  • pulmber

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of plumber - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

lpumber2pllumber1plmuber2plubmer2plumbber1plumberr1plumbre2plumebr2
Edit distance from "plumber"

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 "plumber"?
"plumber" is spelled P-L-U-M-B-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈplʌm.ɚ/.
What does "plumber" mean?
As a noun, "plumber" means: One who works in or with lead.
What words are commonly confused with "plumber"?
"plumber" is commonly confused with "plume", "plumes", "plunder". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "plumber"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "plumber" is /ˈplʌm.ɚ/. 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 "plumber"?
From Middle English plumber, from Old French plummier (French plombier); from Latin plumbārius, from plumbum (“lead or lead shot”). The verb sense “to botch” is perhaps from the negative stereotype of the occupation. 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 "plumber", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

pigeons#18,158payload#18,153pasture#18,151parcels#18,150

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

repealed11 variantsslapping11 variantsmetadata11 variantssouvenir11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list