cataphora
/kætəˈfɔɹə/
"cataphora" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“cataphora” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The use of a pronoun, or other linguistic unit, before the noun phrase to which it refers, sometimes used for rhetorical effect.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | cataphora |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /kætəˈfɔɹə/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “cataphora” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
cataphora is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /kætəˈfɔɹə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The use of a pronoun, or other linguistic unit, before the noun phrase to which it refers, sometimes used for rhetorical effect.".
No misspelling variants are generated for cataphora in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Ancient Greek καταφορά (kataphorá, “a downward motion”), from κατά (katá, “downwards”) + φέρω (phérō, “I carry”). The correct English form is cataphora, spelled C-A-T-A-P-H-O-R-A.
Definition
- 1The use of a pronoun, or other linguistic unit, before the noun phrase to which it refers, sometimes used for rhetorical effect.
Etymology
From Ancient Greek καταφορά (kataphorá, “a downward motion”), from κατά (katá, “downwards”) + φέρω (phérō, “I carry”).
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “cataphora”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-A-T-A-P-H-O-R-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /kætəˈfɔɹə/ (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
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.