chairman

/ˈtʃɛːmən/

//ˈtʃɛːmən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“chairman” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,657. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,657
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person presiding over a meeting.

Corpus desk

Index EN-chairman · chairman · English

chairman · rank #1,657 · 12 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,657
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH artist

Nearest frequency peer: artist (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “chairman”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “chairman” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

chairman vs Chapman
63% similar
chairman vs chairwoman
80% similar

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

Key facts for chairman
PropertyValue
Headwordchairman
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtʃɛːmən/
Letters8
Frequency rank#1,657
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “chairman”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).chairmanlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “artist” (#1,656), “edition” (#1,658), “apparently” (#1,655). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “chairman” is #1,657. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around chairman (IPA /ˈtʃɛːmən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,657 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for chairman, with forms such as "cahirman", "cchairman", and "chaimran". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "Chapman", "chairwoman", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From chair + -man. The correct English form is chairman, spelled C-H-A-I-R-M-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person presiding over a meeting.
  2. 2
    The head of a corporate or governmental board of directors, a committee, or other formal entity.
  3. 3
    Someone whose job is to carry people in a portable chair, sedan chair, or similar conveyance.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how chairman appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. When I got ready to leave, why, Chairman Mao came down to the plane. Chairman Mao gave me some Chinese rugs and told me that I was the only prisoner of war that had ever come through there from North China.
  2. Unsurprisingly, the Group was highly critical of the BTC's organisation and finances, and this prompted Marples to bring forward the Transport Act 1962, which created BR as a standalone entity with its own Board, headed by a full-time chairman. Beeching accepted this latter position, and initially became the BTC chairman in June 1961.

Etymology

From chair + -man.

This word in other languages

presidente(Español)secrétaire général(Français)Vorsitzender(Deutsch)presidente(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cahirman
  • cchairman
  • chaimran
  • chairamn
  • chairmann
  • chairmman
  • chairmna
  • chairrman
  • chariman
  • chhairman
  • chiarman
  • hcairman

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of chairman - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

cahirman2cchairman1chaimran2chairamn2chairmann1chairmman1chairmna2chairrman1
Edit distance from "chairman"

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 "chairman"?
"chairman" is spelled C-H-A-I-R-M-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtʃɛːmən/.
What does "chairman" mean?
As a noun, "chairman" means: A person presiding over a meeting.
What words are commonly confused with "chairman"?
"chairman" is commonly confused with "Chapman", "chairwoman". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "chairman"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chairman" is /ˈtʃɛːmən/. 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 "chairman"?
From chair + -man. 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 "chairman", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

projects#1,643provides#1,671Japanese#1,639somebody#1,675

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

happening12 variantsbecoming12 variantsgreatest12 variantsreturned12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list