pool

/puːl/

//puːl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“pool” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #2,171) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#2,171
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
3
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - A small and rather deep area of (usually) fresh water, as one supplied by a spring, or occurring in the course of a stream or river; a reservoir for water.

Corpus desk

Index EN-pool · pool · English

pool · rank #2,171 · 3 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,171
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 3 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH platform

Nearest frequency peer: platform (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “pool”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “pool” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 2, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

pool vs pro
50% similar
pool vs pop
50% similar
pool vs pot
50% similar

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

Key facts for pool
PropertyValue
Headwordpool
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/puːl/
Letters4
Frequency rank#2,171
Misspellings tracked3
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pool” 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). pool lands here:

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

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

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for pool is neighbouring look-alikes ("pro", "pop", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /puːl/. Frequency #2,171 among 4,417 “P” headwords. 7 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 3 likely wrong-spelling variants for pool, with forms such as "opol", "pooll", and "ppool". 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, "pro", "pop", "pot", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English pool, pole, pol, from Old English pōl (“pool”), from Proto-West Germanic pōl, from Proto-Germanic *pōlaz (“pool, pond”), from Proto-Indo-European *bōlos (“bog, marsh”). Cognate with Scots puil (“pool”), Saterland Frisian Pol (“pool”), We… The correct English form is pool, spelled P-O-O-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A small and rather deep area of (usually) fresh water, as one supplied by a spring, or occurring in the course of a stream or river; a reservoir for water.
  2. 2
    Any small body of standing or stagnant water; a puddle.
  3. 3
    Ellipsis of swimming pool.
  4. 4
    A set of resources that are kept ready to use.
  5. 5
    Any group of like things.
  6. 6
    A small amount of liquid on a surface.
  7. 7
    A localized glow of light.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. the pools of Solomon
  2. the Pool of London

Etymology

From Middle English pool, pole, pol, from Old English pōl (“pool”), from Proto-West Germanic pōl, from Proto-Germanic *pōlaz (“pool, pond”), from Proto-Indo-European *bōlos (“bog, marsh”). Cognate with Scots puil (“pool”), Saterland Frisian Pol (“pool”), West Frisian poel (“pool”), Dutch poel (“pool”), German Low German Pohl, Pool, Pul (“pool”), German Pfuhl (“quagmire, mudhole”), Danish pøl (“puddle”), Swedish pöl (“puddle, pool”), Icelandic pollur (“puddle”), Lithuanian bala (“puddle”), Latvian bala (“a muddly, treeless depression”), Russian боло́то (bolóto, “swamp, bog, marsh”). For the meaning development to a supply of resources compare typologically Russian пруд пруди́ (prud prudí) (< пруд (prud)).

This word in other languages

poza(Español)étang(Français)Becken(Deutsch)piscina(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • opol
  • pooll
  • ppool

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opol2pooll1ppool1
Edit distance from "pool"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "pool"?
"pool" is spelled P-O-O-L. The IPA pronunciation is /puːl/.
What does "pool" mean?
As a noun, "pool" means: A small and rather deep area of (usually) fresh water, as one supplied by a spring, or occurring in the course of a stream or river; a reservoir for water.
What words are commonly confused with "pool"?
"pool" is commonly confused with "pro", "pop", "pot". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pool"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pool" is /puːl/. 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 "pool"?
From Middle English pool, pole, pol, from Old English pōl (“pool”), from Proto-West Germanic pōl, from Proto-Germanic *pōlaz (“pool, pond”), from Proto-Indo-European *bōlos (“bog, marsh”). Cognate with Scots puil (“pool”), Saterland Frisian Pol (“... 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 "pool", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

legs#2,163feed#2,155guns#2,205hole#2,206

What to do next

You've looked up "pool". Here's where to go from here.

  • "pool" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "pro". View pair
  • 3 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #2,171 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "P" letter cohort. P–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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