savour

/ˈseɪvə/

//ˈseɪvə// noun

"savour" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“savour” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #38,147. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#38,147
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An aroma or smell.

Corpus desk

Index EN-savour · savour · English

savour · rank #38,147 · 8 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #38,147
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sativa

Nearest frequency peer: sativa (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “savour”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “savour” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

savour vs sour
67% similar
savour vs Savoy
50% similar
savour vs scour
67% similar

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

Key facts for savour
PropertyValue
Headwordsavour
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈseɪvə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#38,147
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “savour”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).savourlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “sativa” (#38,146), “sawing” (#38,148), “scarab” (#38,149). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “savour” is #38,147. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around savour (IPA /ˈseɪvə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #38,147 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for savour, with forms such as "asvour", "saovur", and "savoru". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "sour", "Savoy", "scour", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English savour, from Anglo-Norman saveur, savor, savour, and Old French saveur, savor, savour (modern French saveur), from Latin sapor, from sapiō (“to taste of (something); to have a flavour”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *seh₁p-, *sep-… The correct English form is savour, spelled S-A-V-O-U-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    An aroma or smell.
  2. 2
    The quality which the sense of taste detects; also (countable), a specific flavour or taste, especially one different from the predominant one.
  3. 3
    The quality which the sense of taste detects; also (countable), a specific flavour or taste, especially one different from the predominant one.
  4. 4
    A distinctive sensation like a flavour or taste, or an aroma or smell.
  5. 5
    A particular quality, especially a small amount of it; a hint or trace of something.
  6. 6
    A quality which is appealing or enjoyable; merit, value.
  7. 7
    A reputation.
  8. 8
    Enjoyment or taste for something; appreciation; pleasure; relish; (countable) an instance of this.
  9. 9
    Knowledge; understanding.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. And Noe [Noah] made an aulter vnto the LORDE⸝ and toke of all maner of clene beaſtes and all maner of clene foules⸝ and offred ſacrifyce vppon the aulter. And the LORDE ſmellyd a ſwete ſavoure and ſayd in his hert: I wyll henceforth no more curſe the erth for mannes ſake⸝ […]
  2. Matr[euis]. Gurney, I vvonder the king dies not, / Being in a vault vp to the knees in vvater, / To vvhich the channels of the caſtell runne, / […] / Gurn[ey]. And ſo do I, Matreuis: yeſternight / I opened but the doore to throvv him meate, / And I vvas almoſt ſtifeled vvith the ſauor.

Etymology

From Middle English savour, from Anglo-Norman saveur, savor, savour, and Old French saveur, savor, savour (modern French saveur), from Latin sapor, from sapiō (“to taste of (something); to have a flavour”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *seh₁p-, *sep- (“to taste; to try out”)) + -or (suffix forming third-declension masculine abstract nouns). Doublet of sapor.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • asvour
  • saovur
  • savoru
  • savourr
  • savuor
  • savvour
  • ssavour
  • svaour

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of savour - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

asvour2saovur2savoru2savourr1savuor2savvour1ssavour1svaour2
Edit distance from "savour"

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 "savour"?
"savour" is spelled S-A-V-O-U-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈseɪvə/.
What does "savour" mean?
As a noun, "savour" means: An aroma or smell.
What words are commonly confused with "savour"?
"savour" is commonly confused with "sour", "Savoy", "scour". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "savour"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "savour" is /ˈseɪvə/. 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 "savour"?
From Middle English savour, from Anglo-Norman saveur, savor, savour, and Old French saveur, savor, savour (modern French saveur), from Latin sapor, from sapiō (“to taste of (something); to have a flavour”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *seh... 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 "savour", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list