# snore

> English word · Verb · IPA /snɔː/ · frequency rank #39,095

## Definitions
1. To breathe during sleep with harsh, snorting noises caused by vibration of the soft palate.

## Etymology
From Middle English snoren, fnoren (“to snore loudly; snort”), from Middle English snore, *fnore (“snore; snort”, noun), from Old English fnora (“snort; sneezing”), from Proto-Germanic *fnuzô, from Proto-Indo-European *pnew- (“to breathe; snort; sneeze”). Compare also Proto-West Germanic *snarkōn, Middle Low German snorren (“to drone”), Dutch snorren (“to hum, purr”).
The change fn → sn in this word is regular, seen also in sneeze, from Middle English fnesen (see sneeze for more).

## Easily confused with
- **soe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-soe)
- **Snr** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-snr)
- **sor** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sor)
- **some** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-some)
- **sure** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sure)
- **sort** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sort)
- **snow** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-snow)
- **sole** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sole)
- **sore** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sore)
- **sora** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sora)
- **snot** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-snot)
- **sone** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sone)
- **story** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-story)
- **store** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-store)
- **stone** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-stone)
- **sport** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sport)
- **storm** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-storm)
- **spoke** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-spoke)
- **sword** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-sword)
- **spare** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/snore-vs-spare)

## Common misspellings (7)
`nsore`, `snnore`, `snoer`, `snorre`, `snroe`, `sonre`, `ssnore`

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