pub
/pʌb/
"pub" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“pub” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #4,880) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.
- #4,880
- frequency rank, English
- 4,417
- “P” headwords
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A public house where beverages, primarily alcoholic, may be bought and consumed, also providing food and sometimes entertainment such as live music or television.
Corpus desk
Index EN-pub · pub · English
pub · rank #4,880 · 0 variants · 20 confusables
- FREQ-COMMON #4,880
- LEN-MID 3 letters
- VOW-1 1 vowel
- CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 4,417
- PHOTO-FINISH pole
Nearest frequency peer: pole (-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 “pub”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- Parker
Parker
95,124 corpus weight
- photograph
photograph
95,123 corpus weight
- pole
pole
95,122 corpus weight
- pub
pub
95,121 corpus weight
- quarters
quarters
95,120 corpus weight
- Queensland
Queensland
95,119 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “pub” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | pub |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /pʌb/ |
| Letters | 3 |
| Frequency rank | #4,880 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “pub” sits in English frequency
Easy to mix with look-alikes
The spelling risk for pub is neighbouring look-alikes ("PV", "PW", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /pʌb/. Frequency #4,880 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Gloss: "A public house where beverages, primarily alcoholic, may be bought and consumed, also providing food and sometimes entertainment such as live music or television.".
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for pub, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "PV", "PW", "PX", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Clipping of public house. The correct English form is pub, spelled P-U-B.
Definition
- 1A public house where beverages, primarily alcoholic, may be bought and consumed, also providing food and sometimes entertainment such as live music or television.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how pub appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Reg liked a chat about old times and we used to go and have a chinwag in the pub.
From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much. Those entering it are greeted by wire fences, walls dating back to colonial times and security posts. For mariners leaving the port after lonely nights on the high seas, the delights of the B52 Night Club and Stallion Pub lie a stumble away.
Etymology
Clipping of public house.
This word in other languages
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 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "pub"?
What does "pub" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "pub"?
How do you pronounce "pub"?
What is the origin of the word "pub"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "pub", not the corpus desk frequency band.
What to do next
You've looked up "pub". Here's where to go from here.
- "pub" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "PV". View pair
- Usage frequency rank #4,880 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.