vow

/vaʊ/

//vaʊ// noun

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

"vow" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“vow” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #13,836) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#13,836
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A solemn promise to perform some act, or behave in a specified manner, especially a promise to live and act in accordance with the rules of a religious order.

Corpus desk

Index EN-vow · vow · English

vow · rank #13,836 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,836
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH veronica

Nearest frequency peer: veronica (-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.

Frequency neighbours of confusable “vow”

Peers at similar corpus weight, separate from look-alike pairs below

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “vow” against nearest ranked English headwords, not a reprint of the confusable-pair desk.

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).

vow vs VR
0% similar
vow vs VP
0% similar
vow vs VW
0% similar

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

Key facts for vow
PropertyValue
Headwordvow
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/vaʊ/
Letters3
Frequency rank#13,836
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “vow”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).vowlands 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 “veronica” (#13,835), “waitress” (#13,837), “vapor” (#13,834). Among 969 “V” headwords, “vow” is #13,836. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for vow is neighbouring look-alikes ("VR", "VP", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /vaʊ/. Frequency #13,836 among 969 “V” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

No misspelling variants are generated for vow in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "VR", "VP", "VW", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English vowe, voue, that from Old French vut, in turn from Latin vōtum (“a promise, dedication, vow”), from vovēre (“to promise, vow”). Not related to avow. Doublet of vote. The correct English form is vow, spelled V-O-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    A solemn promise to perform some act, or behave in a specified manner, especially a promise to live and act in accordance with the rules of a religious order.
  2. 2
    A declaration or assertion.
  3. 3
    A votive offering.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The old hermit, up in the mountains, took a vow of silence.
  2. And Moses spake vnto the heads of the tribes, concerning the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded. If a man vowe a vow vnto the Lord, or sweare an othe to bind his soule with a bond: he shall not breake his word, hee shall doe according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English vowe, voue, that from Old French vut, in turn from Latin vōtum (“a promise, dedication, vow”), from vovēre (“to promise, vow”). Not related to avow. Doublet of vote.

This word in other languages

voto(Español)vœu(Français)Gelübde(Deutsch)voto(Português)

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 "vow"?
"vow" is spelled V-O-W. The IPA pronunciation is /vaʊ/.
What does "vow" mean?
As a noun, "vow" means: A solemn promise to perform some act, or behave in a specified manner, especially a promise to live and act in accordance with the rules of a religious order.
What words are commonly confused with "vow"?
"vow" is commonly confused with "VR", "VP", "VW". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "vow"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "vow" is /vaʊ/. 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 "vow"?
Inherited from Middle English vowe, voue, that from Old French vut, in turn from Latin vōtum (“a promise, dedication, vow”), from vovēre (“to promise, vow”). Not related to avow. Doublet of vote. 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 "vow", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sup#13,818rue#13,801dat#13,898Ons#13,770

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list