anteater

/ˈæntˌiːtə/

//ˈæntˌiːtə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“anteater” is uncommon English (frequency #68,010 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#68,010
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any of several animals of South and Central America, in the suborder Vermilingua, which are noted for eating ants and termites which they catch with their long sticky tongues, including giant antea...

Corpus desk

Index EN-anteater · anteater · English

anteater · rank #68,010 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #68,010
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH anklet

Nearest frequency peer: anklet (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “anteater”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “anteater” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for anteater
PropertyValue
Headwordanteater
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæntˌiːtə/
Letters8
Frequency rank#68,010
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “anteater” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).anteaterfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “anklet” (#68,009), “antihero” (#68,011), “aniline” (#68,008). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “anteater” is #68,010. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

anteater is uncommon English at frequency #68,010 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈæntˌiːtə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for anteater, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From ant + eater. The correct English form is anteater, spelled A-N-T-E-A-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of several animals of South and Central America, in the suborder Vermilingua, which are noted for eating ants and termites which they catch with their long sticky tongues, including giant anteater and lesser anteater (also known as collared anteater).
  2. 2
    Any of some other not closely related species that feed with ants, including pangolin (scaly anteater), echidna (spiny anteater), aardvark (African anteater) and numbat (banded anteater).
  3. 3
    An uncircumcised penis.

Etymology

From ant + eater.

This word in other languages

oso hormiguero(Español)fourmilier(Français)Ameisenbär(Deutsch)

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 "anteater"?
"anteater" is spelled A-N-T-E-A-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæntˌiːtə/.
What does "anteater" mean?
As a noun, "anteater" means: Any of several animals of South and Central America, in the suborder Vermilingua, which are noted for eating ants and termites which they catch with their long sticky tongues, including giant antea...
How do you pronounce "anteater"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "anteater" is /ˈæntˌiːtə/. 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 "anteater"?
From ant + eater. 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 "anteater", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

antihero#68,011antitank#68,012autoplay#68,021Blakeney#68,049

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list