sofa

/ˈsəʊfə/

//ˈsəʊfə// noun

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

"sofa" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sofa” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #9,540 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#9,540
frequency rank, English
4
letters
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A raised area of a building's floor, usually covered with carpeting, used for sitting.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

sofa vs son
50% similar
sofa vs spa
50% similar
sofa vs sox
50% similar

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

Key facts for sofa
PropertyValue
Headwordsofa
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsəʊfə/
Letters4
Frequency rank#9,540
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sofa” 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). sofa 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 sofa is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsəʊfə/. Corpus data places it at rank #9,540 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 2 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 sofa, with forms such as "osfa", "sfoa", and "soaf". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "son", "spa", "sox", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French sofa, ultimately from Arabic صُفَّة (ṣuffa, “a long seat made of stone or brick, covered with rich carpets and cushions and used for sitting”). Cognate with Aramaic צפא/Classical Syriac ܨܦܬܐ (ṣipā’, ṣeppəṯā, “mat, matting”). The word ma… The correct English form is sofa, spelled S-O-F-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A raised area of a building's floor, usually covered with carpeting, used for sitting.
  2. 2
    An upholstered seat with a raised back and one or two raised ends, long enough to comfortably accommodate two or more people.

Etymology

Borrowed from French sofa, ultimately from Arabic صُفَّة (ṣuffa, “a long seat made of stone or brick, covered with rich carpets and cushions and used for sitting”). Cognate with Aramaic צפא/Classical Syriac ܨܦܬܐ (ṣipā’, ṣeppəṯā, “mat, matting”). The word may have entered European languages via Muslim Iberia or through Turkish.

This word in other languages

sofá(Español)canapé(Français)Sofa(Deutsch)sofá(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: osfa,sfoa,soaf,soffa,ssofa

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sofa - 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.

osfa2sfoa2soaf2soffa1ssofa1
Edit distance from "sofa"

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 "sofa"?
"sofa" is spelled S-O-F-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsəʊfə/.
What does "sofa" mean?
As a noun, "sofa" means: A raised area of a building's floor, usually covered with carpeting, used for sitting.
What words are commonly confused with "sofa"?
"sofa" is commonly confused with "son", "spa", "sox". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sofa"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sofa" is /ˈsəʊfə/. 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 "sofa"?
Borrowed from French sofa, ultimately from Arabic صُفَّة (ṣuffa, “a long seat made of stone or brick, covered with rich carpets and cushions and used for sitting”). Cognate with Aramaic צפא/Classical Syriac ܨܦܬܐ (ṣipā’, ṣeppəṯā, “mat, matting”). T... 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 “sofa”

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

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