dragnet

/ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/

//ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt// noun

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

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

The verdict

“dragnet” is uncommon English (frequency #54,134 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#54,134
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A net dragged across the bottom of a body of water.

Corpus desk

Index EN-dragnet · dragnet · English

dragnet · rank #54,134 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #54,134
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH drawl

Nearest frequency peer: drawl (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “dragnet”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for dragnet
PropertyValue
Headworddragnet
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/
Letters7
Frequency rank#54,134
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “dragnet” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).dragnetfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “drawl” (#54,135), “Dreyfuss” (#54,136), “doozy” (#54,130). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “dragnet” is #54,134. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

dragnet is uncommon English at frequency #54,134 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for dragnet in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From drag + net, probably based on the model of Middle English draynet, dreynett (“dragnet”), Old English dræġnet, dræġnett (“dragnet”), equivalent to dray + net. Cognate with Swedish dragnät, Norwegian dragnett, from Icelandic dragnet. The correct English form is dragnet, spelled D-R-A-G-N-E-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A net dragged across the bottom of a body of water.
  2. 2
    A heightened effort by law enforcement personnel undertaken in order to capture suspects.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Anchovy dragnets are an important part Korea's fishing sector. Over 99% of catches found in anchovy dragnets are anchovy. Although the annual total catches of anchovy have fluctuated, dragnets catch 55 to 70% of the total annual catch of anchovy. The remaining portion is caught with drift gill nets (10%) and other fishing methods.
  2. The use of algorithms in policing is one example of their increasing influence on our lives.[…]who, if anyone, is policing their use[?] Such concerns were sharpened further by the continuing revelations about how the US National Security Agency (NSA) has been using algorithms to help it interpret the colossal amounts of data it has collected from its cove…

Etymology

From drag + net, probably based on the model of Middle English draynet, dreynett (“dragnet”), Old English dræġnet, dræġnett (“dragnet”), equivalent to dray + net. Cognate with Swedish dragnät, Norwegian dragnett, from Icelandic dragnet.

This word in other languages

chinchorro(Español)chalut(Français)Schleppnetz(Deutsch)rasca(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 "dragnet"?
"dragnet" is spelled D-R-A-G-N-E-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/.
What does "dragnet" mean?
As a noun, "dragnet" means: A net dragged across the bottom of a body of water.
How do you pronounce "dragnet"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dragnet" is /ˈdɹæɡˌnɛt/. 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 "dragnet"?
From drag + net, probably based on the model of Middle English draynet, dreynett (“dragnet”), Old English dræġnet, dræġnett (“dragnet”), equivalent to dray + net. Cognate with Swedish dragnät, Norwegian dragnett, from Icelandic dragnet. 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 "dragnet", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Emirati#54,152envelop#54,160Estella#54,164fetches#54,179

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list