catnip
/ˈkætnɪp/
"catnip" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“catnip” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #42,573 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #42,573
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any of the about 250 species of flowering plant of the genus Nepeta, family Lamiaceae, certain of which are said to have medicinal qualities.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | catnip |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈkætnɪp/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #42,573 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “catnip” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for catnip is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkætnɪp/. Corpus data places it at rank #42,573 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for catnip, with forms such as "actnip", "cantip", and "catinp". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Catania", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Compound of cat + nep, nip (“catnip”), from Middle English nep, from Old English nepte, from Proto-West Germanic *nepetā, from Latin nepeta (“catnip”). Compare earlier catmint (“catnip”), from Middle English catt mynte, which very likely existed in Old Engl… The correct English form is catnip, spelled C-A-T-N-I-P.
Definition
- 1Any of the about 250 species of flowering plant of the genus Nepeta, family Lamiaceae, certain of which are said to have medicinal qualities.
- 2Nepeta cataria and Nepeta grandiflora (and perhaps other species), which are well-known for causing an apparently harmless pheromone-based intoxication among certain cats.
- 3Something that causes excitement or interest.
Etymology
Compound of cat + nep, nip (“catnip”), from Middle English nep, from Old English nepte, from Proto-West Germanic *nepetā, from Latin nepeta (“catnip”). Compare earlier catmint (“catnip”), from Middle English catt mynte, which very likely existed in Old English (as *cattes minte) as well.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: actnip,cantip,catinp,catnipp,catnnip,catnpi,cattnip,ccatnip,ctanip
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of catnip - 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.
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
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Using “catnip”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-A-T-N-I-P - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈkætnɪp/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Catania” - see the side-by-side comparison. catnip vs Catania
- 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.