controller

/kənˈtɹəʊlə/

//kənˈtɹəʊlə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“controller” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #5,776 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#5,776
frequency rank, English
10
letters
14
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - One who controls something.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

controller vs controllers
91% similar
controller vs controlled
90% similar
controller vs comptroller
82% similar

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

Key facts for controller
PropertyValue
Headwordcontroller
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kənˈtɹəʊlə/
Letters10
Frequency rank#5,776
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “controller” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for controller is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /kənˈtɹəʊlə/. Corpus data places it at rank #5,776 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 9 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for controller, with forms such as "ccontroller", "cnotroller", and "conntroller". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "controllers", "controlled", "comptroller", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English countreroller, from Anglo-Norman contreroulour and Middle French contreroleur (French contrôleur), from Medieval Latin contrārotulātor, from *contrārotulāre (from which control). Doublet of comptroller. By surface analysis, control + -er. The correct English form is controller, spelled C-O-N-T-R-O-L-L-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who controls something.
  2. 2
    Any electric or mechanical device for controlling a circuit or system.
  3. 3
    The chief accounting officer which audits, and manages the financial affairs of a company or government; a comptroller.
  4. 4
    A mechanism that controls or regulates the operation of a machine, especially a peripheral device in a computer.
  5. 5
    A hardware device designed to allow the user to play video games.
  6. 6
    An iron block, usually bolted to a ship's deck, for controlling the running out of a chain cable. The links of the cable tend to drop into hollows in the block, and thus hold fast until disengaged.
  7. 7
    The person who supervises and handles communication with an agent in the field.
  8. 8
    The subject of a control verb. See Control (linguistics)
  9. 9
    In software applications using the model-view-controller design pattern, the part or parts of the application that treat input and output, forming an interface between models and views.

Etymology

From Middle English countreroller, from Anglo-Norman contreroulour and Middle French contreroleur (French contrôleur), from Medieval Latin contrārotulātor, from *contrārotulāre (from which control). Doublet of comptroller. By surface analysis, control + -er.

Synonyms

administratorchiefforemanheadhead manorganizeroverseersuperintendentsupervisorcomptrollerdriver

This word in other languages

controlador(Español)contrôleur(Français)Kontrolleur(Deutsch)controle(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ccontroller,cnotroller,conntroller,conrtoller,contorller,contrloler,controlelr,controler,controllerr,controllre,contrroller,conttroller,cotnroller,ocntroller

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ccontroller1cnotroller2conntroller1conrtoller2contorller2contrloler2controlelr2controler1
Edit distance from "controller"

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 "controller"?
"controller" is spelled C-O-N-T-R-O-L-L-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /kənˈtɹəʊlə/.
What does "controller" mean?
As a noun, "controller" means: One who controls something.
What words are commonly confused with "controller"?
"controller" is commonly confused with "controllers", "controlled", "comptroller". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "controller"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "controller" is /kənˈtɹəʊlə/. 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 "controller"?
From Middle English countreroller, from Anglo-Norman contreroulour and Middle French contreroleur (French contrôleur), from Medieval Latin contrārotulātor, from *contrārotulāre (from which control). Doublet of comptroller. By surface analysis, con... 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.

Using “controller”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is C-O-N-T-R-O-L-L-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /kənˈtɹəʊlə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “controllers” - see the side-by-side comparison. controller vs controllers
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list