# polo

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈpoʊloʊ/ · frequency rank #10,108

## Definitions
1. A ball game where two teams of players on horseback use long-handled mallets to propel the ball along the ground and into their opponent's goal.
2. The game of ice polo, one of the ancestors of ice hockey; a similar game played on the ice, or on a prepared floor, by players wearing skates.
3. A polo shirt.

## Etymology
From Balti پولو (polo, “ball”). Cognate with Tibetan པོ་ལོ (po lo), ཕོ་ལོང (pho long), སྤོ་ལོ (spo lo, “ball”).

## Easily confused with
- **pro** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pro)
- **pop** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pop)
- **pot** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pot)
- **pos** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pos)
- **ppl** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-ppl)
- **poo** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-poo)
- **POW** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pow)
- **POV** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pov)
- **pom** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pom)
- **pox** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pox)
- **PTO** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pto)
- **pon** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pon)
- **PSL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-psl)
- **post** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-post)
- **poor** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-poor)
- **pull** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pull)
- **port** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-port)
- **pool** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pool)
- **porn** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-porn)
- **pope** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/polo-vs-pope)

## Common misspellings (4)
`oplo`, `ploo`, `pollo`, `ppolo`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/polo