spore

/spɔː(ɹ)/

//spɔː(ɹ)// noun

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

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

The verdict

“spore” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #29,101. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#29,101
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A reproductive particle, usually a single cell, released by a fungus, alga, or plant that may germinate into another.

Corpus desk

Index EN-spore · spore · English

spore · rank #29,101 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #29,101
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sphinx

Nearest frequency peer: sphinx (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “spore”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “spore” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

spore vs SPR
0% similar
spore vs sure
60% similar
spore vs spot
60% similar

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

Key facts for spore
PropertyValue
Headwordspore
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/spɔː(ɹ)/
Letters5
Frequency rank#29,101
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “spore”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).sporelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “sphinx” (#29,100), “sowing” (#29,099), “starfish” (#29,103). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “spore” is #29,101. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around spore (IPA /spɔː(ɹ)/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #29,101 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for spore, with forms such as "psore", "sopre", and "spoer". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "SPR", "sure", "spot", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin spora, from Ancient Greek σπορά (sporá, “seed”), related to σπόρος (spóros, “sowing”) and σπείρω (speírō, “to sow”). Related to English spread). The correct English form is spore, spelled S-P-O-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A reproductive particle, usually a single cell, released by a fungus, alga, or plant that may germinate into another.
  2. 2
    A thick resistant particle produced by a bacterium or protist to survive in harsh or unfavorable conditions.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how spore appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Thresher maws are subterranean carnivores that spend their entire lives eating or searching for something to eat. Threshers reproduce via spores that lie dormant for millennia, yet are robust enough to survive prolonged periods in deep space and atmospheric re-entry. As a result, thresher spores appear on many worlds, spread by previous generations of spa…

Etymology

From New Latin spora, from Ancient Greek σπορά (sporá, “seed”), related to σπόρος (spóros, “sowing”) and σπείρω (speírō, “to sow”). Related to English spread).

This word in other languages

espora(Español)spore(Français)Spore(Deutsch)esporo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • psore
  • sopre
  • spoer
  • sporre
  • sppore
  • sproe
  • sspore

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

psore2sopre2spoer2sporre1sppore1sproe2sspore1
Edit distance from "spore"

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 "spore"?
"spore" is spelled S-P-O-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /spɔː(ɹ)/.
What does "spore" mean?
As a noun, "spore" means: A reproductive particle, usually a single cell, released by a fungus, alga, or plant that may germinate into another.
What words are commonly confused with "spore"?
"spore" is commonly confused with "SPR", "sure", "spot". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "spore"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spore" is /spɔː(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 "spore"?
From New Latin spora, from Ancient Greek σπορά (sporá, “seed”), related to σπόρος (spóros, “sowing”) and σπείρω (speírō, “to sow”). Related to English spread). 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "spore", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

swain#29,112Tania#29,117sieve#29,084shard#29,083

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

SXSW7 variantstenet7 variantsTunis7 variantsreread7 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list