butterfingers

/ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz/

//ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz// noun

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

"butterfingers" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“butterfingers” is uncommon English (frequency #96,820 among 31,241 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#96,820
frequency rank, English
31,241
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Someone who tends to drop things; (more generally) someone who is clumsy or uncoordinated; a klutz.

Key facts for butterfingers
PropertyValue
Headwordbutterfingers
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz/
Letters13
Frequency rank#96,820
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “butterfingers” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

butterfingers is uncommon English at frequency #96,820 among 31,241 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for butterfingers in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From butter + fingers (suggesting that someone is clumsy and drops things as if their hands are coated in slippery butter), from butterfingered. The correct English form is butterfingers, spelled B-U-T-T-E-R-F-I-N-G-E-R-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Someone who tends to drop things; (more generally) someone who is clumsy or uncoordinated; a klutz.
  2. 2
    One's fingers which tend to drop things, or are clumsy or uncoordinated.
  3. 3
    A tendency to drop things, or to be clumsy or uncoordinated.

Etymology

From butter + fingers (suggesting that someone is clumsy and drops things as if their hands are coated in slippery butter), from butterfingered.

This word in other languages

manazas(Español)avoir deux mains gauches(Français)Tollpatsch(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 "butterfingers"?
"butterfingers" is spelled B-U-T-T-E-R-F-I-N-G-E-R-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz/.
What does "butterfingers" mean?
As a noun, "butterfingers" means: Someone who tends to drop things; (more generally) someone who is clumsy or uncoordinated; a klutz.
How do you pronounce "butterfingers"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "butterfingers" is /ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz/. 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 "butterfingers"?
From butter + fingers (suggesting that someone is clumsy and drops things as if their hands are coated in slippery butter), from butterfingered. 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.

Using “butterfingers”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is B-U-T-T-E-R-F-I-N-G-E-R-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈbʌtəˌfɪŋɡəz/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list