sumo

/ˈsuːməʊ/

//ˈsuːməʊ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“sumo” has 5 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,985. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,985
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A stylised Japanese form of wrestling in which a wrestler loses if he is forced from the ring, or if any part of his body except the soles of his feet touches the ground.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sumo · sumo · English

sumo · rank #26,985 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,985
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH suffocating

Nearest frequency peer: suffocating (-2 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 “sumo”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “sumo” 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).

sumo vs sun
50% similar
sumo vs SUV
0% similar
sumo vs sup
50% similar

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

Key facts for sumo
PropertyValue
Headwordsumo
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsuːməʊ/
Letters4
Frequency rank#26,985
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “sumo”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).sumolands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “suffocating” (#26,983), “surgically” (#26,987), “succumb” (#26,982). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sumo” is #26,985. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 5 spelling variants around sumo (IPA /ˈsuːməʊ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #26,985 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for sumo, with forms such as "smuo", "ssumo", and "summo". 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, "sun", "SUV", "sup", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Japanese 相(す)撲(もう) (sumō). The correct English form is sumo, spelled S-U-M-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    A stylised Japanese form of wrestling in which a wrestler loses if he is forced from the ring, or if any part of his body except the soles of his feet touches the ground.
  2. 2
    A rikishi (sumo wrestler).

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 相(す)撲(もう) (sumō).

This word in other languages

sumo(Español)sumo(Français)Sumo(Deutsch)sumô(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • smuo
  • ssumo
  • summo
  • suom
  • usmo

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sumo - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

smuo2ssumo1summo1suom2usmo2
Edit distance from "sumo"

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 "sumo"?
"sumo" is spelled S-U-M-O. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsuːməʊ/.
What does "sumo" mean?
As a noun, "sumo" means: A stylised Japanese form of wrestling in which a wrestler loses if he is forced from the ring, or if any part of his body except the soles of his feet touches the ground.
What words are commonly confused with "sumo"?
"sumo" is commonly confused with "sun", "SUV", "sup". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sumo"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sumo" is /ˈsuːməʊ/. 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 "sumo"?
Borrowed from Japanese 相(す)撲(もう) (sumō). 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 "sumo", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

stow#26,977spar#26,972tres#27,006tris#27,007

Similar misspelling depth

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

sari5 variantsAjay5 variantsPuig5 variantsplatt5 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list