contact

/ˈkɑntækt/

//ˈkɑntækt// noun

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

"contact" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“contact” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,102. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,102
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of touching physically; being in close association.

Corpus desk

Index EN-contact · contact · English

contact · rank #1,102 · 11 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,102
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH consider

Nearest frequency peer: consider (-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 “contact”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “contact” 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).

contact vs content
71% similar
contact vs context
71% similar
contact vs contest
71% similar

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

Key facts for contact
PropertyValue
Headwordcontact
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkɑntækt/
Letters7
Frequency rank#1,102
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “contact”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).contactlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “consider” (#1,101), “drop” (#1,103), “travel” (#1,100). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “contact” is #1,102. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around contact (IPA /ˈkɑntækt/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,102 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 10 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for contact, with forms such as "ccontact", "cnotact", and "conatct". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 14 confusable-pair relationships, "content", "context", "contest", 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 Latin contactus, from contingō (“I touch on all sides”), from tangō (“I touch”). Used in English since the 17th century. The correct English form is contact, spelled C-O-N-T-A-C-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of touching physically; being in close association.
  2. 2
    The establishment of communication (with).
  3. 3
    The situation of being within sight of something; visual contact.
  4. 4
    A nodule designed to connect a device with something else.
  5. 5
    Someone who can be contacted, or with whom one is in communication.
  6. 6
    Someone who can be contacted, or with whom one is in communication.
  7. 7
    A contact lens.
  8. 8
    A device designed for repetitive connections.
  9. 9
    Contact juggling.
  10. 10
    The plane between two adjacent bodies of dissimilar rock.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She mixed furniture with the same fatal profligacy as she mixed drinks, and this outrageous contact between things which were intended by Nature to be kept poles apart gave her an inexpressible thrill.
  2. I haven't been in contact with her for years.

Etymology

From Latin contactus, from contingō (“I touch on all sides”), from tangō (“I touch”). Used in English since the 17th century.

This word in other languages

contacto(Español)contact(Français)Kontakt(Deutsch)contato(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccontact
  • cnotact
  • conatct
  • conntact
  • contacct
  • contactt
  • contatc
  • contcat
  • conttact
  • cotnact
  • ocntact

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of contact - 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.

ccontact1cnotact2conatct2conntact1contacct1contactt1contatc2contcat2
Edit distance from "contact"

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 "contact"?
"contact" is spelled C-O-N-T-A-C-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɑntækt/.
What does "contact" mean?
As a noun, "contact" means: The act of touching physically; being in close association.
What words are commonly confused with "contact"?
"contact" is commonly confused with "content", "context", "contest". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "contact"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "contact" is /ˈkɑntækt/. 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 "contact"?
From Latin contactus, from contingō (“I touch on all sides”), from tangō (“I touch”). Used in English since the 17th century. 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 "contact", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

section#1,097quickly#1,094welcome#1,113message#1,089

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

positive11 variantsprevious11 variantshusband11 variantsNumbers11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list