spall
/spɔːl/
"spall" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“spall” is uncommon English (frequency #74,529 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #74,529
- frequency rank, English
- 54,294
- “S” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A splinter, fragment or chip, especially of stone.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | spall |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /spɔːl/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #74,529 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “spall” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
spall is uncommon English at frequency #74,529 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /spɔːl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
No generated misspelling entries exist for spall in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English spalle (“a chip”) (first documented in 1440), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from the Middle English verb spald (“to split”) (c.1400), from Middle Low German spalden, cognate with Old High German spaltan (“to split”). The correct English form is spall, spelled S-P-A-L-L.
Definition
- 1A splinter, fragment or chip, especially of stone.
- 2A process of weathering, aging, or other wear that involves the crumbling of the substrate.
Etymology
From Middle English spalle (“a chip”) (first documented in 1440), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from the Middle English verb spald (“to split”) (c.1400), from Middle Low German spalden, cognate with Old High German spaltan (“to split”).
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
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Using “spall”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-P-A-L-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /spɔːl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.