Alastair

/ˈæl.ə.stɚ/

//ˈæl.ə.stɚ// name

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

"alastair" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Alastair” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,671. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,671
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A male given name from Scottish Gaelic.

Corpus desk

Index EN-alastair · Alastair · English

Alastair · rank #26,671 · 11 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,671
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH AIS

Nearest frequency peer: AIS (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “Alastair”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “Alastair” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

Alastair vs Alistair
88% similar
Alastair vs Alasdair
88% similar

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

Key facts for Alastair
PropertyValue
HeadwordAlastair
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈæl.ə.stɚ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#26,671
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “Alastair”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).Alastairlands 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 “AIS” (#26,670), “alleys” (#26,672), “Aiden” (#26,669). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “Alastair” is #26,671. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around Alastair (IPA /ˈæl.ə.stɚ/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #26,671 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A male given name from Scottish Gaelic.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for Alastair, with forms such as "aalstair", "alasatir", and "alasstair". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "Alistair", "Alasdair", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Scottish Gaelic Alasdair (“Alexander”). Doublet of Alexander. The correct English form is Alastair, spelled A-L-A-S-T-A-I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A male given name from Scottish Gaelic.

Etymology

From Scottish Gaelic Alasdair (“Alexander”). Doublet of Alexander.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aalstair
  • alasatir
  • alasstair
  • alastairr
  • alastari
  • alastiar
  • alasttair
  • alatsair
  • allastair
  • alsatair
  • laastair

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Alastair - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

aalstair2alasatir2alasstair1alastairr1alastari2alastiar2alasttair1alatsair2
Edit distance from "Alastair"

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 "Alastair"?
"Alastair" is spelled A-L-A-S-T-A-I-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæl.ə.stɚ/.
What does "Alastair" mean?
As a proper noun, "Alastair" means: A male given name from Scottish Gaelic.
What words are commonly confused with "Alastair"?
"Alastair" is commonly confused with "Alistair", "Alasdair". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Alastair"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Alastair" is /ˈæl.ə.stɚ/. 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 "Alastair"?
From Scottish Gaelic Alasdair (“Alexander”). Doublet of Alexander. 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 "Alastair", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

analyzer#26,676Aquarius#26,684Villiers#26,656verbatim#26,655

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Beaufort11 variantsTravers11 variantstenancy11 variantscleanser11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list