# ant

> English word · Noun · IPA /ænt/ · frequency rank #8,754

## Definitions
1. Any of various insects in the family Formicidae in the order Hymenoptera, typically living in large colonies composed almost entirely of flightless females.
2. A Web spider.

## Etymology
Etymology tree
Proto-West Germanic *āmaitijā
Old English ǣmete
Middle English ampte
English ant
From Middle English ampte, amte, emete, amete, from Old English ǣmete (“ant”), from Proto-West Germanic *āmaitijā (literally “biting-thing, cutter”), of uncertain and debated origin (q.v.), but probably from Proto-Germanic *ē- (“off, away”) + *maitaną (“to cut”), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂y- (“to cut”). Cognate with Scots emmot (“ant”), dialectal Dutch emt, empt (“ant”), German Ameise and Emse (“ant”). See also emmet.

## Easily confused with
- **as** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-as)
- **at** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-at)
- **AP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ap)
- **aw** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-aw)
- **AR** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ar)
- **AU** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-au)
- **AZ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-az)
- **av** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-av)
- **ay** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ay)
- **ao** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ao)
- **ax** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ax)
- **are** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-are)
- **any** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-any)
- **ask** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ask)
- **art** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-art)
- **ass** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ass)
- **App** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-app)
- **arm** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-arm)
- **ate** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-ate)
- **arc** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ant-vs-arc)

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