# chipmunk

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈt͡ʃɪp.mʌŋk/ · frequency rank #39,732

## Definitions
1. Any of the subtribe Tamiina of small, striped rodents; they are found in North America, with the exception of the Siberian chipmunk which is found primarily in Asia.

## Etymology
1832; alteration (influenced by chipping squirrel) of earlier chitmunk, from older Ojibwe ačitamo˙nˀ (“squirrels”) (modern ajidamoo), literally ‘those who descend headlong’, from ačit- (“headfirst, face-down”) (compare modern ajijibizo (“he falls headfirst”), ajidagoojin (“he hangs upside down”)). The English verb developed due to the high-pitched voices of the American puppet and cartoon chipmunks in the group Alvin and the Chipmunks, who later starred in a popular children's TV show in the 1980s.

## Common misspellings (13)
`cchipmunk`, `chhipmunk`, `chimpunk`, `chipmmunk`, `chipmnuk`, `chipmukn`, `chipmunkk`, `chipmunnk`, `chippmunk`, `chipumnk`, `chpimunk`, `cihpmunk`, `hcipmunk`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/chipmunk