contrarian

/kənˈtɹɛə.ɹi.ən/

//kənˈtɹɛə.ɹi.ən// noun

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

"contrarian" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“contrarian” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #45,290. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#45,290
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
15
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who likes or tends to express a contradicting viewpoint, especially from one held by a majority of people, usually because of nonconformity or spite.

Corpus desk

Index EN-contrarian · contrarian · English

contrarian · rank #45,290 · 15 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #45,290
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH coped

Nearest frequency peer: coped (+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 “contrarian”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “contrarian” 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
Key facts for contrarian
PropertyValue
Headwordcontrarian
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kənˈtɹɛə.ɹi.ən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#45,290
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “contrarian”

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).contrarianlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “coped” (#45,291), “cordially” (#45,292), “conman” (#45,287). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “contrarian” is #45,290. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around contrarian (IPA /kənˈtɹɛə.ɹi.ən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #45,290 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for contrarian, with forms such as "ccontrarian", "cnotrarian", and "conntrarian". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From contrary + -an (suffix forming agent nouns; and meaning of or pertaining to forming adjectives), modelled after words like libertarian. The correct English form is contrarian, spelled C-O-N-T-R-A-R-I-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who likes or tends to express a contradicting viewpoint, especially from one held by a majority of people, usually because of nonconformity or spite.
  2. 2
    A financial investor who tends to have an opinion of market trends at variance with most others.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Christopher [Hitchens] is bored by the epithet contrarian, which has been trailing him around for a quarter of a century. What he is, in any case, is an autocontrarian: he seeks not just the most difficult position, but the most difficult position for Christopher Hitchens.
  2. [Søren] Kierkegaard had no university career, and [Friedrich] Nietzsche was a professor of Greek and Roman philology who had to retire because of ill health. Both were individualists, and both were contrarians by nature, dedicated to making people uncomfortable.

Etymology

From contrary + -an (suffix forming agent nouns; and meaning of or pertaining to forming adjectives), modelled after words like libertarian.

This word in other languages

contreras(Español)anti-conformiste(Français)Querdenker(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccontrarian
  • cnotrarian
  • conntrarian
  • conrtarian
  • contarrian
  • contrairan
  • contrarain
  • contrariann
  • contrarina
  • contrarrian
  • contrraian
  • contrrarian
  • conttrarian
  • cotnrarian
  • ocntrarian

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of contrarian - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ccontrarian1cnotrarian2conntrarian1conrtarian2contarrian2contrairan2contrarain2contrariann1
Edit distance from "contrarian"

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 "contrarian"?
"contrarian" is spelled C-O-N-T-R-A-R-I-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is /kənˈtɹɛə.ɹi.ən/.
What does "contrarian" mean?
As a noun, "contrarian" means: A person who likes or tends to express a contradicting viewpoint, especially from one held by a majority of people, usually because of nonconformity or spite.
What are common misspellings of "contrarian"?
Common misspellings include "ccontrarian", "cnotrarian", "conntrarian", "conrtarian", "contarrian". The correct spelling is "contrarian".
How do you pronounce "contrarian"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "contrarian" is /kənˈtɹɛə.ɹi.ən/. 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 "contrarian"?
From contrary + -an (suffix forming agent nouns; and meaning of or pertaining to forming adjectives), modelled after words like libertarian. 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 "contrarian", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

cybernetic#45,310Chatterjee#45,265deciphered#45,319despairing#45,324

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

Cameroonian15 variantsdrunkenly15 variantsBletchley15 variantsfootbridge15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list