yuk

/jʌk/

//jʌk// intj

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

The verdict

“yuk” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #41,484) as an interjection. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#41,484
frequency rank, English
366
“Y” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An exuberant laugh.

Corpus desk

Index EN-yuk · yuk · English

yuk · rank #41,484 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #41,484
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 366
  • PHOTO-FINISH you's

Nearest frequency peer: you's (-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 “yuk”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “yuk” 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).

yuk vs yup
67% similar
yuk vs yum
67% similar
yuk vs Yun
33% similar

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

Key facts for yuk
PropertyValue
Headwordyuk
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechInterjection
IPA/jʌk/
Letters3
Frequency rank#41,484
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “yuk”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).yuklands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “you's” (#41,483), “Yule” (#41,485), “yeoman” (#41,482). Among 366 “Y” headwords, “yuk” is #41,484. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for yuk is neighbouring look-alikes ("yup", "yum", …), not just typos; it is aninterjection pronounced /jʌk/. Frequency #41,484 among 366 “Y” headwords. Gloss: "An exuberant laugh.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for yuk in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "yup", "yum", "Yun", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Imitative, similar to the variant yuck. The correct English form is yuk, spelled Y-U-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    An exuberant laugh.

Etymology

Imitative, similar to the variant yuck.

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 "yuk"?
"yuk" is spelled Y-U-K. The IPA pronunciation is /jʌk/.
What does "yuk" mean?
As an interjection, "yuk" means: An exuberant laugh.
What words are commonly confused with "yuk"?
"yuk" is commonly confused with "yup", "yum", "Yun". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "yuk"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "yuk" is /jʌk/. 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 "yuk"?
Imitative, similar to the variant yuck. 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 "yuk", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list