Rab

name

"rab" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Rab” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #36,723) as a proper noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#36,723
frequency rank, English
21,470
“R” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An island off the Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea.

Corpus desk

Index EN-rab · Rab · English

Rab · rank #36,723 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #36,723
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 21,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH Quinlan

Nearest frequency peer: Quinlan (-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 “Rab”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “Rab” 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 May 6, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

Rab vs re
0% similar
Rab vs RS
33% similar
Rab vs rd
0% similar

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

Key facts for Rab
PropertyValue
HeadwordRab
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
Letters3
Frequency rank#36,723
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Rab” 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). Rab 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 Rab is neighbouring look-alikes ("re", "RS", …), not just typos; it is aproper noun. Frequency #36,723 among 21,470 “R” headwords. 2 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Rab has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "re", "RS", "rd", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Serbo-Croatian Rab, ultimately derived from a substrate root *Arb-, as apparent in Ancient Greek Ἄρβα (Árba), Latin Arba and Italian Arbe. The correct English form is Rab, spelled R-A-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    An island off the Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea.
  2. 2
    A town on the above island.

Etymology

From Serbo-Croatian Rab, ultimately derived from a substrate root *Arb-, as apparent in Ancient Greek Ἄρβα (Árba), Latin Arba and Italian Arbe.

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 May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Rab"?
"Rab" is spelled R-A-B.
What does "Rab" mean?
As a proper noun, "Rab" means: An island off the Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea.
What words are commonly confused with "Rab"?
"Rab" is commonly confused with "re", "RS", "rd". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "Rab"?
From Serbo-Croatian Rab, ultimately derived from a substrate root *Arb-, as apparent in Ancient Greek Ἄρβα (Árba), Latin Arba and Italian Arbe. 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 "Rab", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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