colportage
"colportage" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“colportage” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The distribution or selling of publications via carriers, particularly devotional literature.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | colportage |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 10 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “colportage” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
colportage is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The distribution or selling of publications via carriers, particularly devotional literature.".
No misspelling variants are generated for colportage in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: 1840s, from French colportage, from colporteur (1723). The correct English form is colportage, spelled C-O-L-P-O-R-T-A-G-E.
Definition
- 1The distribution or selling of publications via carriers, particularly devotional literature.
Etymology
1840s, from French colportage, from colporteur (1723).
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
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Using “colportage”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-O-L-P-O-R-T-A-G-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.