# anal

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈeɪ.nəl/ · frequency rank #7,767

## Definitions
1. Of, related to, intended for or involving the anus.
2. Of the stage in psychosexual development when the child's interest is alleged to be concentrated on the anal region.
3. Of a person, compulsive and stubborn, obsessed with neatness and accuracy (usually in an egosyntonic way), supposedly from not having progressed beyond the anal stage.
4. Of tasks, questions, subject matter, etc., obsessively fussy or precise.
5. Of a vein, proximate to the thorax.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Latin ānālis. By surface analysis, anus + -al.
Psychological sense shortened from anal-retentive.

## Easily confused with
- **and** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-and)
- **any** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-any)
- **Ann** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ann)
- **ant** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ant)
- **Ang** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ang)
- **Ava** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ava)
- **ANC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-anc)
- **ASA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-asa)
- **apa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-apa)
- **ans** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ans)
- **AOL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-aol)
- **ara** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ara)
- **ani** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ani)
- **ATA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-ata)
- **ASL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-asl)
- **aya** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-aya)
- **awa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-awa)
- **APL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-apl)
- **away** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-away)
- **Andy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/anal-vs-andy)

## Common misspellings (5)
`aanl`, `anall`, `anla`, `annal`, `naal`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/anal