crotchet
/ˈkɹɑt͡ʃ.ɪt/
"crotchet" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“crotchet” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A musical note one beat long in 4/4 time.
Corpus desk
Index EN-crotchet · crotchet · English
crotchet · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "C" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | crotchet |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈkɹɑt͡ʃ.ɪt/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “crotchet” in English
Rare enough to double-check
crotchet is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkɹɑt͡ʃ.ɪt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 8 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for crotchet, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English crochet, from Old French crochet (“small hook”), from croc + -et (diminutive suffix), from Old Norse krókr (“hook”). The musical note was named so because of a small hook on its stem in black notation (in modern notation this hook is on … The correct English form is crotchet, spelled C-R-O-T-C-H-E-T.
Definition
- 1A musical note one beat long in 4/4 time.
- 2A sharp curve or crook; a shape resembling a hook
- 3A hook-shaped instrument, especially as used in obstetric surgery.
- 4A whim or a fancy.
- 5A forked support; a crotch.
- 6An indentation in the glacis of the covered way, at a point where a traverse is placed.
- 7The arrangement of a body of troops, either forward or rearward, so as to form a line nearly perpendicular to the general line of battle.
- 8A square bracket.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how crotchet appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
The crotchets and quavers are dancing up and down the stave like little black boys on a fence.
Either Doctor Denman or an old Woman would have waited—but since the horrid death-doing Crotchet has been found out, & its use permitted—Oh! many & many a Life has been flung away.
Etymology
From Middle English crochet, from Old French crochet (“small hook”), from croc + -et (diminutive suffix), from Old Norse krókr (“hook”). The musical note was named so because of a small hook on its stem in black notation (in modern notation this hook is on the quaver/eighth note). Doublet of crochet, crocket, and croquet.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.