chaperon

/ˈʃæ.pəˌɹoʊn/

//ˈʃæ.pəˌɹoʊn// noun

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

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

The verdict

“chaperon” is uncommon English (frequency #87,129 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#87,129
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An adult who accompanies or supervises one or more young, unmarried men or women during social occasions, usually with the specific intent of preventing some types of social or sexual interactions ...

Corpus desk

Index EN-chaperon · chaperon · English

chaperon · rank #87,129 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #87,129
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Chania

Nearest frequency peer: Chania (-2 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.

Long-tail ranks near “chaperon”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “chaperon” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for chaperon
PropertyValue
Headwordchaperon
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈʃæ.pəˌɹoʊn/
Letters8
Frequency rank#87,129
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “chaperon” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).chaperonfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Chania” (#87,127), “Chemung” (#87,131), “chambray” (#87,126). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “chaperon” is #87,129. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

chaperon is uncommon English at frequency #87,129 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈʃæ.pəˌɹoʊn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for chaperon, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French chaperon (“hood”), from Middle French, "head covering", from Old French chape. The correct English form is chaperon, spelled C-H-A-P-E-R-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An adult who accompanies or supervises one or more young, unmarried men or women during social occasions, usually with the specific intent of preventing some types of social or sexual interactions or illegal behavior.
  2. 2
    A type of hood, often ornamental or official, with an attached cape and a tail, later worn as a hat with the face hole put over the top of the head instead.
  3. 3
    A device placed on the foreheads of horses which draw the hearse in pompous funerals.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. "I am, as it were," she concluded, "the chaperon of my young cousin, Lucy, and it would be a serious thing if I put her under an obligation to people of whom we know nothing. His manner was somewhat unfortunate. I hope I acted for the best."
  2. His head and face cover'd with a chaperon, out of which there are but two holes to look through.

Etymology

From French chaperon (“hood”), from Middle French, "head covering", from Old French chape.

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 "chaperon"?
"chaperon" is spelled C-H-A-P-E-R-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃæ.pəˌɹoʊn/.
What does "chaperon" mean?
As a noun, "chaperon" means: An adult who accompanies or supervises one or more young, unmarried men or women during social occasions, usually with the specific intent of preventing some types of social or sexual interactions ...
How do you pronounce "chaperon"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chaperon" is /ˈʃæ.pəˌɹoʊn/. 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 "chaperon"?
From French chaperon (“hood”), from Middle French, "head covering", from Old French chape. 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 "chaperon", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

chambray#87,126centrism#87,124catacomb#87,121Chitwood#87,138

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list