shave

/ʃeɪv/

//ʃeɪv// verb

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

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

The verdict

“shave” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #9,248 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#9,248
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To make (the head, skin etc.) bald or (the hair) shorter by using a tool such as a razor or electric clippers to cut the hair close to the skin.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

shave vs she
60% similar
shave vs shoe
60% similar
shave vs shaw
60% similar

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

Key facts for shave
PropertyValue
Headwordshave
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ʃeɪv/
Letters5
Frequency rank#9,248
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “shave” 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). shave 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 shave is 5 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ʃeɪv/. Corpus data places it at rank #9,248 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 9 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 shave, with forms such as "hsave", "sahve", and "shaev". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "she", "shoe", "shaw", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English shaven, schaven, from Old English sċafan (“to shave, scrape, shred, polish”), from Proto-West Germanic *skaban, from Proto-Germanic *skabaną (“to scrape”), from Proto-Indo-European *skabʰ- (“to cut, split, form, carve”). Cognat… The correct English form is shave, spelled S-H-A-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To make (the head, skin etc.) bald or (the hair) shorter by using a tool such as a razor or electric clippers to cut the hair close to the skin.
  2. 2
    To cut anything in this fashion.
  3. 3
    To remove hair from one's face by this means.
  4. 4
    To cut finely, for example slices of meat.
  5. 5
    To skim along or near the surface of; to pass close to, or touch lightly, in passing.
  6. 6
    To reduce in size, weight, time taken etc., usually by a small amount.
  7. 7
    To be hard and severe in a bargain with; to practice extortion on; to cheat.
  8. 8
    To buy (a note) at a discount greater than the legal rate of interest, or to deduct in discounting it more than the legal rate allows.
  9. 9
    To injure by employing a knife.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English shaven, schaven, from Old English sċafan (“to shave, scrape, shred, polish”), from Proto-West Germanic *skaban, from Proto-Germanic *skabaną (“to scrape”), from Proto-Indo-European *skabʰ- (“to cut, split, form, carve”). Cognate with West Frisian skave, Dutch schaven, Low German schaven, German schaben, Danish skave, Norwegian Nynorsk skava, Swedish skava, Icelandic skafa, Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌱𐌰𐌽 (skaban), all roughly “to scrape, chafe, shave, plane, remove the outer lay of”.

This word in other languages

afeitar(Español)raser(Français)rasieren(Deutsch)raspar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: hsave,sahve,shaev,shavve,shhave,shvae,sshave

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of shave - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

hsave2sahve2shaev2shavve1shhave1shvae2sshave1
Edit distance from "shave"

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 "shave"?
"shave" is spelled S-H-A-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ʃeɪv/.
What does "shave" mean?
As a verb, "shave" means: To make (the head, skin etc.) bald or (the hair) shorter by using a tool such as a razor or electric clippers to cut the hair close to the skin.
What words are commonly confused with "shave"?
"shave" is commonly confused with "she", "shoe", "shaw". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "shave"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shave" is /ʃeɪv/. 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 "shave"?
Inherited from Middle English shaven, schaven, from Old English sċafan (“to shave, scrape, shred, polish”), from Proto-West Germanic *skaban, from Proto-Germanic *skabaną (“to scrape”), from Proto-Indo-European *skabʰ- (“to cut, split, form, carve... 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 “shave”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is S-H-A-V-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ʃeɪv/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “she” - see the side-by-side comparison. shave vs she
  • 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