Anderson
/ˈæn.dɚ.sən/
"anderson" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Anderson” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,858 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #3,858
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 11
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A Scottish surname originating as a patronymic.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Anderson |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ˈæn.dɚ.sən/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #3,858 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Anderson” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Anderson is 8 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈæn.dɚ.sən/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,858 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 24 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for Anderson, with forms such as "adnerson", "andderson", and "anderosn". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "Andersson", "Anders", "Andersen", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English Ander (“Andrew”) + -son, after Saint Andrew, patron saint of Scotland. In the United States, sometimes an anglicization of Danish and Norwegian Andersen or Swedish Andersson. The correct English form is Anderson, spelled A-N-D-E-R-S-O-N.
Definition
- 1A Scottish surname originating as a patronymic.
- 2A male given name.
- 3A placename
- 4A placename
- 5A placename
- 6A placename
- 7A placename
- 8A placename
- 9A placename
- 10A placename
- 11A placename
- 12A placename
- 13A placename
- 14A placename
- 15A placename
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- 17A placename
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- 24A placename
Etymology
From Middle English Ander (“Andrew”) + -son, after Saint Andrew, patron saint of Scotland. In the United States, sometimes an anglicization of Danish and Norwegian Andersen or Swedish Andersson.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: adnerson,andderson,anderosn,anderrson,andersno,andersonn,andesron,andreson,anedrson,annderson,naderson
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Anderson - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “Anderson”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-N-D-E-R-S-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈæn.dɚ.sən/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Andersson” - see the side-by-side comparison. Anderson vs Andersson
- 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.