# rabies

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈɹeɪ.biːz/ · frequency rank #21,323

## Definitions
1. An infectious disease caused by species of Lyssavirus that causes acute encephalitis in warm-blooded animals and people, characterised by abnormal behaviour such as biting, excitement, aggressiveness, and dementia, followed by paralysis and death.

## Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin rabiēs (“rage, madness, fury”). Doublet of rage.

## Easily confused with
- **rates** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-rates)
- **races** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-races)
- **rains** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-rains)
- **rails** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-rails)
- **robes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-robes)
- **raves** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-raves)
- **rakes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-rakes)
- **ranges** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-ranges)
- **radius** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-radius)
- **Raines** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-raines)
- **rapier** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabies-vs-rapier)
- **rabid** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rabid-vs-rabies)

## Common misspellings (8)
`arbies`, `rabbies`, `rabeis`, `rabiess`, `rabise`, `raibes`, `rbaies`, `rrabies`

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