chancer

/ˈtʃɑːn.sə(ɹ)/

//ˈtʃɑːn.sə(ɹ)// noun

"chancer" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“chancer” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A scheming opportunist.

Corpus desk

Index EN-chancer · chancer · English

chancer · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for chancer
PropertyValue
Headwordchancer
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtʃɑːn.sə(ɹ)/
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “chancer” in English

chancersits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

chancer is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtʃɑːn.sə(ɹ)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A scheming opportunist.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for chancer, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From chance + -er. The correct English form is chancer, spelled C-H-A-N-C-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A scheming opportunist.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Actually, that's exactly what O'Dowd is doing in Get Shorty, presenting a taciturn thug with chewed up charm, a chancer pitching a movie in Hollywood.
  2. From then on, Emin became fixed in many minds as the drunken chancer who boasted about her promiscuity and called it art.

Etymology

From chance + -er.

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

How do you spell "chancer"?
"chancer" is spelled C-H-A-N-C-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtʃɑːn.sə(ɹ)/.
What does "chancer" mean?
As a noun, "chancer" means: A scheming opportunist.
How do you pronounce "chancer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chancer" is /ˈtʃɑːn.sə(ɹ)/. 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 "chancer"?
From chance + -er. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list