spare

/spɛə(ɹ)/

//spɛə(ɹ)// adj

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

"spare" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“spare” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #4,490 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#4,490
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Extra.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

spare vs SPR
0% similar
spare vs sure
60% similar
spare vs star
60% similar

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

Key facts for spare
PropertyValue
Headwordspare
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/spɛə(ɹ)/
Letters5
Frequency rank#4,490
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “spare” 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). spare 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 spare is 5 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /spɛə(ɹ)/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,490 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for spare, with forms such as "psare", "sapre", and "spaer". 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, "SPR", "sure", "star", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English spare, spar, from Old English spær (“sparing, scant”), from Proto-Germanic *sparaz, from Proto-Indo-European *sph₁rós, from the root *speh₁-. Compare Dutch spaar(zaam), German spar(sam) and spär(lich), Swedish spar(sam), Icelandic sparr … The correct English form is spare, spelled S-P-A-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Extra.
  2. 2
    Extra.
  3. 3
    Extra.
  4. 4
    Not plentiful.
  5. 5
    Not plentiful.
  6. 6
    Not plentiful.
  7. 7
    Not plentiful.
  8. 8
    Very angry; frustrated or distraught.

Etymology

From Middle English spare, spar, from Old English spær (“sparing, scant”), from Proto-Germanic *sparaz, from Proto-Indo-European *sph₁rós, from the root *speh₁-. Compare Dutch spaar(zaam), German spar(sam) and spär(lich), Swedish spar(sam), Icelandic sparr (“sparing”); also Latin (pro)sperus (“lucky”), Old Church Slavonic споръ (sporŭ, “plentiful”), Albanian shperr (“earn money”), Persian سپار (sepâr, “entrust; deposit”), Ancient Greek σπαρνός (sparnós, “rare”), Sanskrit स्फिर (sphirá, “thick”).

This word in other languages

frugal(Español)rechange(Français)überschüssig(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: psare,sapre,spaer,sparre,sppare,sprae,sspare

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

psare2sapre2spaer2sparre1sppare1sprae2sspare1
Edit distance from "spare"

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 "spare"?
"spare" is spelled S-P-A-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /spɛə(ɹ)/.
What does "spare" mean?
As an adjective, "spare" means: Extra.
What words are commonly confused with "spare"?
"spare" is commonly confused with "SPR", "sure", "star". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "spare"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spare" is /spɛə(ɹ)/. 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 "spare"?
From Middle English spare, spar, from Old English spær (“sparing, scant”), from Proto-Germanic *sparaz, from Proto-Indo-European *sph₁rós, from the root *speh₁-. Compare Dutch spaar(zaam), German spar(sam) and spär(lich), Swedish spar(sam), Icelan... 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 “spare”

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

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