sombrero
/səmˈbɹɛɹ.əʊ/
"sombrero" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“sombrero” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #49,060 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #49,060
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A kind of hat with a high conical or cylindrical crown and a saucer-shaped brim, highly embroidered, made of plush felt.
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 | sombrero |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /səmˈbɹɛɹ.əʊ/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #49,060 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “sombrero” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for sombrero is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /səmˈbɹɛɹ.əʊ/. Corpus data places it at rank #49,060 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for sombrero, with forms such as "osmbrero", "smobrero", and "sobmrero". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "somber", "sombre", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Spanish sombrero (“hat”), from sombra (“shadow, shade”) + -ero, literally, "shade-maker". The drink was named after the hat. The correct English form is sombrero, spelled S-O-M-B-R-E-R-O.
Definition
- 1A kind of hat with a high conical or cylindrical crown and a saucer-shaped brim, highly embroidered, made of plush felt.
- 2A mixed drink with coffee liqueur and cream.
- 3A series of four consecutive strikes.
Etymology
Borrowed from Spanish sombrero (“hat”), from sombra (“shadow, shade”) + -ero, literally, "shade-maker". The drink was named after the hat.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: osmbrero,smobrero,sobmrero,sombbrero,somberro,sombreor,sombrerro,sombrreo,sombrrero,sommbrero,somrbero,ssombrero
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sombrero - 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.
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 "sombrero"?
What does "sombrero" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "sombrero"?
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Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “sombrero”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-O-M-B-R-E-R-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /səmˈbɹɛɹ.əʊ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “somber” - see the side-by-side comparison. sombrero vs somber
- 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.