coati

/kəʊˈɑːti/

//kəʊˈɑːti// noun

"coati" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency English
5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any of several omnivorous mammals, of the genus Nasua, that live in the range from the southern United States to northern Argentina.

Corpus desk

Index EN-coati · coati · English

coati · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 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 coati
PropertyValue
Headwordcoati
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kəʊˈɑːti/
Letters5
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “coati” in English

coatifalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Rare enough to double-check

coati is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /kəʊˈɑːti/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any of several omnivorous mammals, of the genus Nasua, that live in the range from the southern United States to northern Argentina.".

coati has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Spanish coatí, from Portuguese quati, coati, from Old Tupi kua'ti, from cua (“belt”) + tim (“nose”). The correct English form is coati, spelled C-O-A-T-I.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of several omnivorous mammals, of the genus Nasua, that live in the range from the southern United States to northern Argentina.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Prospectors and cowpunchers who see the animals most often, sometimes call them Mexican monkeys. Others believe the coati to be a peculiar kind of arboreal anteater. More generally in this region, coatis are called “chulo bears” or simply “chulos,” and will be so referred to hereafter.
  2. The coatis are four small, carnivorous mammals related to the raccoon, red panda and ringtail, or cacomistle. They range in size from 15 inches (38 cm) in the mountain coati, Nasuella olivacca, to 16-26 inches (41-67 cm) long in the three species Nasua nasua, N. nelsoni and N. narica.

Etymology

From Spanish coatí, from Portuguese quati, coati, from Old Tupi kua'ti, from cua (“belt”) + tim (“nose”).

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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 "coati"?
"coati" is spelled C-O-A-T-I. The IPA pronunciation is /kəʊˈɑːti/.
What does "coati" mean?
As a noun, "coati" means: Any of several omnivorous mammals, of the genus Nasua, that live in the range from the southern United States to northern Argentina.
How do you pronounce "coati"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "coati" is /kəʊˈɑːti/. 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 "coati"?
From Spanish coatí, from Portuguese quati, coati, from Old Tupi kua'ti, from cua (“belt”) + tim (“nose”). 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