pound

/paʊnd/

//paʊnd// noun

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

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

The verdict

“pound” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #4,180 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#4,180
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A unit of weight in various measurement systems.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

pound vs pun
60% similar
pound vs punk
60% similar
pound vs pour
60% similar

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

Key facts for pound
PropertyValue
Headwordpound
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/paʊnd/
Letters5
Frequency rank#4,180
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pound” 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). pound 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 pound is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /paʊnd/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,180 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 15 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for pound, with forms such as "opund", "ponud", and "poudn". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "pun", "punk", "pour", 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 pound, from Old English pund (“a pound, weight”), from Proto-West Germanic *pund, from Proto-Germanic *pundą (“pound, weight”), an early borrowing from Latin pondō (“by weight”), ablative form of pondus (“weight”), from Proto-Indo-Europe… The correct English form is pound, spelled P-O-U-N-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A unit of weight in various measurement systems.
  2. 2
    A unit of weight in various measurement systems.
  3. 3
    A unit of weight in various measurement systems.
  4. 4
    A unit of mass in various measurement systems.
  5. 5
    A unit of mass in various measurement systems.
  6. 6
    A unit of mass in various measurement systems.
  7. 7
    A unit of mass in various measurement systems.
  8. 8
    A unit of force in various measurement systems
  9. 9
    A unit of force in various measurement systems
  10. 10
    A unit of force in various measurement systems
  11. 11
    A unit of currency in various currency systems.
  12. 12
    A unit of currency in various currency systems.
  13. 13
    A unit of currency in various currency systems.
  14. 14
    A unit of currency in various currency systems.
  15. 15
    The symbol #.

Etymology

From Middle English pound, from Old English pund (“a pound, weight”), from Proto-West Germanic *pund, from Proto-Germanic *pundą (“pound, weight”), an early borrowing from Latin pondō (“by weight”), ablative form of pondus (“weight”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pend- (“to pull, stretch”). Cognate with Dutch pond, German Pfund, Danish pund and Swedish pund. Doublet of funt, pfund, pood, and punt.

This word in other languages

libra(Español)livre(Français)Pfund(Deutsch)libra(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: opund,ponud,poudn,poundd,pounnd,ppound,puond

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opund2ponud2poudn2poundd1pounnd1ppound1puond2
Edit distance from "pound"

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 "pound"?
"pound" is spelled P-O-U-N-D. The IPA pronunciation is /paʊnd/.
What does "pound" mean?
As a noun, "pound" means: A unit of weight in various measurement systems.
What words are commonly confused with "pound"?
"pound" is commonly confused with "pun", "punk", "pour". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pound"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pound" is /paʊnd/. 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 "pound"?
From Middle English pound, from Old English pund (“a pound, weight”), from Proto-West Germanic *pund, from Proto-Germanic *pundą (“pound, weight”), an early borrowing from Latin pondō (“by weight”), ablative form of pondus (“weight”), from Proto-I... 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 “pound”

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

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