yaw

/jɔː/

//jɔː// noun

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

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

The verdict

“yaw” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #34,355 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#34,355
frequency rank, English
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The rotation of an aircraft, ship, or missile about its vertical axis so as to cause the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, ship, or missile to deviate from the flight line or heading in its horizo...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

yaw vs yo
33% similar
yaw vs ye
33% similar
yaw vs yu
33% similar

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

Key facts for yaw
PropertyValue
Headwordyaw
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/jɔː/
Letters3
Frequency rank#34,355
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “yaw” 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). yaw lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for yaw is 3 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /jɔː/. Corpus data places it at rank #34,355 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

yaw doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "yo", "ye", "yu", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Unknown, first attested in the mid-16th century. Perhaps related to yar (“quick, agile”), or alternatively from Old Norse jaga (“to chase, drive, move back and forth”), from Middle Low German jagen (“to hunt, chase, pursue”), from Old Saxon *jagōn, from Pro… The correct English form is yaw, spelled Y-A-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    The rotation of an aircraft, ship, or missile about its vertical axis so as to cause the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, ship, or missile to deviate from the flight line or heading in its horizontal plane.
  2. 2
    The angle between the longitudinal axis of a projectile at any moment and the tangent to the trajectory in the corresponding point of flight of the projectile.
  3. 3
    A vessel's motion rotating about the vertical axis, so the bow yaws from side to side; a characteristic of unsteadiness.
  4. 4
    The extent of yawing; the rotation angle about the vertical axis.

Etymology

Unknown, first attested in the mid-16th century. Perhaps related to yar (“quick, agile”), or alternatively from Old Norse jaga (“to chase, drive, move back and forth”), from Middle Low German jagen (“to hunt, chase, pursue”), from Old Saxon *jagōn, from Proto-West Germanic *jagōn, from Proto-Germanic *jakkōną (“to hunt”).

This word in other languages

bandazo(Español)lacet(Français)Gieren(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 "yaw"?
"yaw" is spelled Y-A-W. The IPA pronunciation is /jɔː/.
What does "yaw" mean?
As a noun, "yaw" means: The rotation of an aircraft, ship, or missile about its vertical axis so as to cause the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, ship, or missile to deviate from the flight line or heading in its horizo...
What words are commonly confused with "yaw"?
"yaw" is commonly confused with "yo", "ye", "yu". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "yaw"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "yaw" is /jɔː/. 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 "yaw"?
Unknown, first attested in the mid-16th century. Perhaps related to yar (“quick, agile”), or alternatively from Old Norse jaga (“to chase, drive, move back and forth”), from Middle Low German jagen (“to hunt, chase, pursue”), from Old Saxon *jagōn... 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 “yaw”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is Y-A-W - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /jɔː/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “yo” - see the side-by-side comparison. yaw vs yo
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list