snag
/ˈsnæɡ/
"snag" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“snag” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #20,501 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #20,501
- frequency rank, English
- 4
- letters
- 5
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A stump or base of a branch that has been lopped off; a short branch, or a sharp or rough branch.
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 | snag |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈsnæɡ/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Frequency rank | #20,501 |
| Misspellings tracked | 5 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “snag” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for snag is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsnæɡ/. Corpus data places it at rank #20,501 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for snag, with forms such as "nsag", "snagg", and "snga". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "spa", "SNP", "STA", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier snag (“stump or branch of a tree”), from Middle English *snagge, *snage, from Old Norse snagi (“clothes peg”) (compare Old Norse snag-hyrndr (“snag-horned, having jagged corners”)), perhaps ultimately from a derivative of Proto-Germanic *snakk-… The correct English form is snag, spelled S-N-A-G.
Definition
- 1A stump or base of a branch that has been lopped off; a short branch, or a sharp or rough branch.
- 2A dead tree that remains standing.
- 3A tree, or a branch of a tree, fixed in the bottom of a river or other navigable water, and rising nearly or quite to the surface, by which boats are sometimes pierced and sunk.
- 4Any sharp protuberant part of an object, which may catch, scratch, or tear other objects brought into contact with it.
- 5A tooth projecting beyond the others; a broken or decayed tooth.
- 6A problem or difficulty with something.
- 7A pulled thread or yarn, as in cloth; a tear.
- 8One of the secondary branches of an antler.
Etymology
From earlier snag (“stump or branch of a tree”), from Middle English *snagge, *snage, from Old Norse snagi (“clothes peg”) (compare Old Norse snag-hyrndr (“snag-horned, having jagged corners”)), perhaps ultimately from a derivative of Proto-Germanic *snakk-, *snēgg, variations of *snakaną (“to crawl, creep, wind about”). Compare Norwegian snag, snage (“protrusion; projecting point”), Icelandic snagi (“peg”). Also see Dutch snoek (“pike”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: nsag,snagg,snga,snnag,ssnag
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of snag - 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.
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 "snag"?
What does "snag" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "snag"?
How do you pronounce "snag"?
What is the origin of the word "snag"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “snag”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-N-A-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈsnæɡ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “spa” - see the side-by-side comparison. snag vs spa
- 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.