card

/kɑːd/

//kɑːd// noun

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

"card" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“card” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #964 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#964
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A playing card.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

card vs CD
0% similar
card vs CR
0% similar
card vs cat
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for card
PropertyValue
Headwordcard
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kɑːd/
Letters4
Frequency rank#964
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “card” 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). card lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for card is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /kɑːd/. Corpus data places it at rank #964 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 26 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for card, with forms such as "acrd", "cadr", and "cardd". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "CD", "CR", "cat", 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 carde (“playing card”), from Old French carte, from Latin charta, from Ancient Greek χάρτης (khártēs, “paper, papyrus”). Doublet of carte and chart. The correct English form is card, spelled C-A-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A playing card.
  2. 2
    Any game using playing cards; a card game.
  3. 3
    A resource or argument, used to achieve a purpose. (See play the something card.)
  4. 4
    Any flat, normally rectangular piece of stiff paper, plastic, etc.
  5. 5
    A bank card.
  6. 6
    Any electronic payment (rather than a cash payment using notes, bills or coins).
  7. 7
    Paper that is thicker and more durable than normal writing or printing paper, but thinner and more flexible than paperboard, used for postcards, playing cards, etc.; card stock.
  8. 8
    A map or chart.
  9. 9
    An amusing or entertaining person, often slightly eccentric.
  10. 10
    A list of scheduled events or of performers or contestants; chiefly used in professional wrestling.
  11. 11
    A tabular presentation of the key statistics of an innings or match: batsmen’s scores and how they were dismissed, extras, total score and bowling figures.
  12. 12
    A removable electronic device that may be inserted into a powered electronic device to provide additional capability.
  13. 13
    Any of a set of pages or forms that the user can navigate between, and fill with data, in certain user interfaces.
  14. 14
    A greeting card.
  15. 15
    A business card.
  16. 16
    A title card or intertitle: a piece of filmed, printed text edited into the midst of the photographed action at various points, generally to convey character dialogue or descriptive narrative material related to the plot.
  17. 17
    A test card.
  18. 18
    In formal debating, a verbatim citation used as evidence for a point.
  19. 19
    A published note, containing a brief statement, explanation, request, expression of thanks, etc.
  20. 20
    A printed programme.
  21. 21
    An attraction or inducement.
  22. 22
    Ellipsis of compass card.
  23. 23
    A perforated pasteboard or sheet-metal plate for warp threads, making part of the Jacquard apparatus of a loom.
  24. 24
    A graph formed from a given graph by deleting one vertex.
  25. 25
    An indicator card.
  26. 26
    Ellipsis of report card.

Etymology

From Middle English carde (“playing card”), from Old French carte, from Latin charta, from Ancient Greek χάρτης (khártēs, “paper, papyrus”). Doublet of carte and chart.

This word in other languages

carta(Español)carte(Français)Karte(Deutsch)cartão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: acrd,cadr,cardd,carrd,ccard,crad

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of card - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

acrd2cadr2cardd1carrd1ccard1crad2
Edit distance from "card"

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 "card"?
"card" is spelled C-A-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /kɑːd/.
What does "card" mean?
As a noun, "card" means: A playing card.
What words are commonly confused with "card"?
"card" is commonly confused with "CD", "CR", "cat". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "card"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "card" is /kɑːd/. 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 "card"?
From Middle English carde (“playing card”), from Old French carte, from Latin charta, from Ancient Greek χάρτης (khártēs, “paper, papyrus”). Doublet of carte and chart. 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 “card”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is C-A-R-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /kɑːd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “CD” - see the side-by-side comparison. card vs CD
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list