poll

/pɔl/

//pɔl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“poll” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,969 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#3,969
frequency rank, English
4
letters
3
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A survey of people, usually statistically analyzed to gauge wider public opinion.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

poll vs pop
50% similar
poll vs pot
50% similar
poll vs pos
50% similar

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

Key facts for poll
PropertyValue
Headwordpoll
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pɔl/
Letters4
Frequency rank#3,969
Misspellings tracked3
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “poll” 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). poll lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for poll is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pɔl/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,969 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 3 likely wrong-spelling variants for poll, with forms such as "opll", "plol", and "ppoll". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "pop", "pot", "pos", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English pol, polle ("scalp, pate"), from or cognate with Middle Dutch pol, pōle, polle (“top, summit; head”), from Proto-West Germanic *poll, from Proto-Germanic *pullaz (“round object, head, top”), from Proto-Indo-European *bolno-, *bōwl- (“orb… The correct English form is poll, spelled P-O-L-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A survey of people, usually statistically analyzed to gauge wider public opinion.
  2. 2
    A formal vote held in order to ascertain the most popular choice.
  3. 3
    A polling place (usually as plural, polling places)
  4. 4
    The result of the voting, the total number of votes recorded.
  5. 5
    The head, particularly the scalp or pate upon which hair (normally) grows.
  6. 6
    A mass of people, a mob or muster, considered as a head count.
  7. 7
    The broad or butt end of an axe or a hammer.
  8. 8
    The pollard or European chub, a kind of fish.

Etymology

From Middle English pol, polle ("scalp, pate"), from or cognate with Middle Dutch pol, pōle, polle (“top, summit; head”), from Proto-West Germanic *poll, from Proto-Germanic *pullaz (“round object, head, top”), from Proto-Indo-European *bolno-, *bōwl- (“orb, round object, bubble”), from Proto-Indo-European *bew- (“to blow, swell”). Akin to Scots pow (“head, crown, scalp, skull”), Saterland Frisian pol (“round, full, brimming”, adjective), German Low German Polle, Poll (“round object, ball”), German Low German Poller (“head, tree-top, bulb”), Danish puld (“crown of a hat”), Swedish dialectal pull (“head”). Meaning "collection of votes" is first recorded 1625, from the notion of "counting heads".

This word in other languages

encuesta(Español)sondage(Français)Umfrage(Deutsch)sondagem(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: opll,plol,ppoll

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of poll - 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.

opll2plol2ppoll1
Edit distance from "poll"

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 "poll"?
"poll" is spelled P-O-L-L. The IPA pronunciation is /pɔl/.
What does "poll" mean?
As a noun, "poll" means: A survey of people, usually statistically analyzed to gauge wider public opinion.
What words are commonly confused with "poll"?
"poll" is commonly confused with "pop", "pot", "pos". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "poll"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "poll" is /pɔl/. 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 "poll"?
From Middle English pol, polle ("scalp, pate"), from or cognate with Middle Dutch pol, pōle, polle (“top, summit; head”), from Proto-West Germanic *poll, from Proto-Germanic *pullaz (“round object, head, top”), from Proto-Indo-European *bolno-, *b... 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.

Using “poll”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is P-O-L-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /pɔl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “pop” - see the side-by-side comparison. poll vs pop
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list