commander

/kəˈmændɚ/

//kəˈmændɚ// noun

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

"commander" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“commander” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,935. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,935
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One who exercises control and direction of a military or naval organization.

Corpus desk

Index EN-commander · commander · English

commander · rank #2,935 · 12 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,935
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH comedy

Nearest frequency peer: comedy (-1 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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “commander”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “commander” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

commander vs commands
78% similar
commander vs commando
78% similar
commander vs commoner
78% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for commander
PropertyValue
Headwordcommander
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kəˈmændɚ/
Letters9
Frequency rank#2,935
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “commander”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “comedy” (#2,934), “comparison” (#2,936), “clubs” (#2,933). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “commander” is #2,935. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around commander (IPA /kəˈmændɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,935 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for commander, with forms such as "ccommander", "cmomander", and "comamnder". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "commands", "commando", "commoner", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English comaundour, commaunder, comaunder, borrowed from Old French comandeor, cumandeur, from comander. By surface analysis, command + -er. See command. The correct English form is commander, spelled C-O-M-M-A-N-D-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who exercises control and direction of a military or naval organization.
  2. 2
    A naval officer whose rank is above that of a lieutenant commander and below that of captain.
  3. 3
    One who exercises control and direction over a group of persons.
  4. 4
    A designation or rank in certain non-military organizations such as NASA and various police forces.
  5. 5
    The chief officer of a commandry.
  6. 6
    A heavy beetle or wooden mallet, used in paving, in sail lofts, etc.
  7. 7
    A rank within an honorary order: e.g. Commander of the Legion of Honour.
  8. 8
    Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the Asian genus Moduza.
  9. 9
    A soldier who has attained the rank of sergeant or higher

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I think if post commanders of the unchaplained posts could employ acceptable clergymen […] then the needs might be met.
  2. Instead, Korda squeezes Eisenhower’s extraordinary two-term presidency — not to mention his stints as president of Columbia University and commander of NATO forces — into 140 themeless pages.

Etymology

From Middle English comaundour, commaunder, comaunder, borrowed from Old French comandeor, cumandeur, from comander. By surface analysis, command + -er. See command.

This word in other languages

comandante(Español)commandant(Français)Befehlshaber(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccommander
  • cmomander
  • comamnder
  • comander
  • commadner
  • commandder
  • commanderr
  • commandre
  • commanedr
  • commannder
  • commnader
  • ocmmander

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of commander - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ccommander1cmomander2comamnder2comander1commadner2commandder1commanderr1commandre2
Edit distance from "commander"

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 "commander"?
"commander" is spelled C-O-M-M-A-N-D-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /kəˈmændɚ/.
What does "commander" mean?
As a noun, "commander" means: One who exercises control and direction of a military or naval organization.
What words are commonly confused with "commander"?
"commander" is commonly confused with "commands", "commando", "commoner". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "commander"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "commander" is /kəˈmændɚ/. 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 "commander"?
From Middle English comaundour, commaunder, comaunder, borrowed from Old French comandeor, cumandeur, from comander. By surface analysis, command + -er. See command. 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 "commander", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

childhood#2,931democracy#2,941organized#2,959regularly#2,911

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

clinical12 variantsentitled12 variantsvaluable12 variantsHollywood12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list