wop

/wɒp/

//wɒp// noun

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

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

The verdict

“wop” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #34,353) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#34,353
frequency rank, English
1,759
“W” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An person of Italian descent.

Corpus desk

Index EN-wop · wop · English

wop · rank #34,353 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #34,353
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,759
  • PHOTO-FINISH Wordsworth

Nearest frequency peer: Wordsworth (+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 “wop”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “wop” 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).

wop vs Wu
0% similar
wop vs wt
33% similar
wop vs WS
0% similar

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

Key facts for wop
PropertyValue
Headwordwop
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/wɒp/
Letters3
Frequency rank#34,353
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “wop”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).woplands 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 “Wordsworth” (#34,354), “winded” (#34,351), “yaw” (#34,355). Among 1,759 “W” headwords, “wop” is #34,353. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for wop is neighbouring look-alikes ("Wu", "wt", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /wɒp/. Frequency #34,353 among 1,759 “W” headwords. Gloss: "An person of Italian descent.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for wop, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Wu", "wt", "WS", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Neapolitan guappo (“dude, stud”), a greeting borrowed from Spanish guapo (“bold, handsome”). Contrary to popular belief, the term is not an acronym of without passport or working off passage, which are backronyms derived from the term. First attested i… The correct English form is wop, spelled W-O-P.

Definition

  1. 1
    An person of Italian descent.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Detective J.J. McVea of the Charles street station, who arrested the boys, says that the robbery of the safe was a remarkable one and showed no trace of amateurism. It was committed by four boys. Besides Lyons and Murphy, he says, there were in it Albert Moquin, 14 years old, of 68 West Third street, and one whom Lyons calls “Oscar the Wop,” or “Oscar the…
  2. There was a time, not very long ago, when you couldn't find a Wop -- that means an Italian in the latest downtown dialect -- in Danny's resort even by using a microscope. But to-day it's different. The members of the Five Points gang, all dark skinned sons of Sicily, grew tired of flitting from place to place, with no set rendezvous for their nightly gath…

Etymology

From Neapolitan guappo (“dude, stud”), a greeting borrowed from Spanish guapo (“bold, handsome”). Contrary to popular belief, the term is not an acronym of without passport or working off passage, which are backronyms derived from the term. First attested in New York City around 1906, eventually also spreading to Canada, Australia, and Britain.

This word in other languages

tano(Español)rital(Français)Itaker(Deutsch)carcamano(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 "wop"?
"wop" is spelled W-O-P. The IPA pronunciation is /wɒp/.
What does "wop" mean?
As a noun, "wop" means: An person of Italian descent.
What words are commonly confused with "wop"?
"wop" is commonly confused with "Wu", "wt", "WS". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "wop"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "wop" is /wɒp/. 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 "wop"?
From Neapolitan guappo (“dude, stud”), a greeting borrowed from Spanish guapo (“bold, handsome”). Contrary to popular belief, the term is not an acronym of without passport or working off passage, which are backronyms derived from the term. First ... 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 "wop", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

yaw#34,355Zia#34,357wer#34,347asm#34,384

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list