dab

[ˈd̪aβ̞]

/[ˈd̪aβ̞]/ noun

The verdict

“dab” is uncommon Spanish (frequency #59,154 among 4,885 “D” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,154
frequency rank, Spanish
4,885
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Paso de baile urbano en el que el bailarín deja caer la cabeza sobre el ángulo interior del codo mientras levanta el brazo, en un gesto que recuerda a un estornudo.

Corpus desk

Index ES-dab · dab · Spanish

dab · rank #59,154 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #59,154
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,885
  • PHOTO-FINISH custodian

Nearest frequency peer: custodian (-1 rank slots)

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 neighbourhood for “dab”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “dab” sits against the nearest ranked Spanish headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for dab
PropertyValue
Headworddab
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈd̪aβ̞]
Letters3
Frequency rank#59,154
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Dónde se sitúa “dab” en la frecuencia del español

Esta escala corre desde el núcleo del español cotidiano (izquierda) hasta el rastro de formas rara vez usadas (derecha).dabcae aquí:

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

Los ticks avanzan en logaritmo; cada uno es del orden de diez veces más raro. En la misma franja de rareza aparecen “custodian” (#59,153), “dates” (#59,157), “cuajar” (#59,150). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

dab is uncommon Spanish at frequency #59,154 among 4,885 “D” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈd̪aβ̞]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for dab, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct Spanish form is dab, spelled D-A-B.

Definition

  1. 1
    Paso de baile urbano en el que el bailarín deja caer la cabeza sobre el ángulo interior del codo mientras levanta el brazo, en un gesto que recuerda a un estornudo.
  2. 2
    Gesto característico de dicho paso de baile.

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 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "dab"?
"dab" is spelled D-A-B. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈd̪aβ̞].
What does "dab" mean?
As a noun, "dab" means: Paso de baile urbano en el que el bailarín deja caer la cabeza sobre el ángulo interior del codo mientras levanta el brazo, en un gesto que recuerda a un estornudo.
How do you pronounce "dab"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dab" is [ˈd̪aβ̞]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "dab" come from?
"dab" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 Spanish words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "dab", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

What to do next

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PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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