walkabout

Name: walkabout, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“walkabout” is uncommon English (frequency #52,711 among 12,113 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#52,711
frequency rank, English: 12,113
“W” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A period, often extended, during which an Aboriginal person left a station or settlement to travel on country, typically seasonally or for traditional cultural reasons; a journey by foot taken by a...

Key facts for walkabout
Property	Value
Headword	walkabout
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
Letters	9
Frequency rank	#52,711
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “walkabout” 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). walkabout lands here:

#52,711

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

walkabout is uncommon English at frequency #52,711 among 12,113 “W” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for walkabout in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Deverbal from walk about, originally in Australian Pidgin English; the Australian aboriginal word wokabat is derived from this term. The correct English form is walkabout, spelled W-A-L-K-A-B-O-U-T.

Definition

1
A period, often extended, during which an Aboriginal person left a station or settlement to travel on country, typically seasonally or for traditional cultural reasons; a journey by foot taken by an Aboriginal as a temporary withdrawal from white society.
2
A walking trip.
3
A public stroll by some celebrity to meet a group of people informally.
4
An absence, usually from a regular place with a possibility of a return.

Etymology

Deverbal from walk about, originally in Australian Pidgin English; the Australian aboriginal word wokabat is derived from this term.

This word in other languages

bain de foule(Français)Rundgang(Deutsch)

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 "walkabout"?

"walkabout" is spelled W-A-L-K-A-B-O-U-T.

What does "walkabout" mean?

As a noun, "walkabout" means: A period, often extended, during which an Aboriginal person left a station or settlement to travel on country, typically seasonally or for traditional cultural reasons; a journey by foot taken by a...

What is the origin of the word "walkabout"?

Deverbal from walk about, originally in Australian Pidgin English; the Australian aboriginal word wokabat is derived from this term. 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 “walkabout”

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

The one correct English spelling is W-A-L-K-A-B-O-U-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
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.