contralto

/kɒnˈtɹæltəʊ/

//kɒnˈtɹæltəʊ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“contralto” is uncommon English (frequency #78,489 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#78,489
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The lowest female voice or voice part, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. The terms contralto and alto refer to the same musical pitch range, but among singers, the term contralto is reserved...

Corpus desk

Index EN-contralto · contralto · English

contralto · rank #78,489 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #78,489
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH connivance

Nearest frequency peer: connivance (-2 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.

Long-tail ranks near “contralto”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “contralto” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for contralto
PropertyValue
Headwordcontralto
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kɒnˈtɹæltəʊ/
Letters9
Frequency rank#78,489
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “contralto” in English

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “connivance” (#78,487), “coquette” (#78,492), “correlative” (#78,493). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “contralto” is #78,489. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

contralto is uncommon English at frequency #78,489 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /kɒnˈtɹæltəʊ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The lowest female voice or voice part, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. The terms contralto and alto refer to the same musical pitch range, but among singers, the term contralto is reserved...".

contralto has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Contraction of contratenor alto, from Latin contratenor altus. The correct English form is contralto, spelled C-O-N-T-R-A-L-T-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    The lowest female voice or voice part, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. The terms contralto and alto refer to the same musical pitch range, but among singers, the term contralto is reserved for female singers; the equivalent male form is counter-tenor. Originally the contratenor altus was a high countermelody sung against the tenor or main melody.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. As for her dress, it was invariably rich, effective, and chic, yet in good taste. Lastly, her feet and hands were astonishing, and her voice a deep contralto.
  2. Out in the yard a womanʼs hoarse contralto intoned a hymn.

Etymology

Contraction of contratenor alto, from Latin contratenor altus.

Synonyms

alto

This word in other languages

contralto(Français)contralto(Português)

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 "contralto"?
"contralto" is spelled C-O-N-T-R-A-L-T-O. The IPA pronunciation is /kɒnˈtɹæltəʊ/.
What does "contralto" mean?
As a noun, "contralto" means: The lowest female voice or voice part, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. The terms contralto and alto refer to the same musical pitch range, but among singers, the term contralto is reserved...
How do you pronounce "contralto"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "contralto" is /kɒnˈtɹæltəʊ/. 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 "contralto"?
Contraction of contratenor alto, from Latin contratenor altus. 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 "contralto", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

classwork#78,476danceable#78,509deadening#78,514diasporic#78,528

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list