footnote

/ˈfʊtˌnəʊt/

//ˈfʊtˌnəʊt// noun

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

"footnote" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“footnote” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #23,273. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#23,273
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A short piece of text, often numbered, placed at the bottom of a printed page, that adds a comment, citation, reference etc, to a designated part of the main text.

Corpus desk

Index EN-footnote · footnote · English

footnote · rank #23,273 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #23,273
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH Flanagan

Nearest frequency peer: Flanagan (-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 “footnote”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “footnote” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

footnote vs fortnite
75% similar

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

Key facts for footnote
PropertyValue
Headwordfootnote
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈfʊtˌnəʊt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#23,273
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “footnote”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Flanagan” (#23,272), “flammable” (#23,271), “FP” (#23,275). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “footnote” is #23,273. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around footnote (IPA /ˈfʊtˌnəʊt/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #23,273 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for footnote, with forms such as "ffootnote", "foontote", and "footnnote". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "fortnite", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From foot + note. The correct English form is footnote, spelled F-O-O-T-N-O-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A short piece of text, often numbered, placed at the bottom of a printed page, that adds a comment, citation, reference etc, to a designated part of the main text.
  2. 2
    An event of lesser importance than some larger event to which it is related.
  3. 3
    A qualification to the import of something.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. consult the footnotes for more details
  2. Above all, the 48-page timetables of the new service, which have been distributed free at every station in the scheme, are a model to the rest of B.R. For the first time on British Railways, so far as we are aware, a substantial timetable has been produced, not only without a single footnote but also devoid of all wearisome asterisks, stars, letter suffix…

Etymology

From foot + note.

This word in other languages

nota(Español)Fußnote(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ffootnote
  • foontote
  • footnnote
  • footnoet
  • footnotte
  • footntoe
  • footonte
  • foottnote
  • fotnote
  • fotonote
  • ofotnote

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of footnote - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ffootnote1foontote2footnnote1footnoet2footnotte1footntoe2footonte2foottnote1
Edit distance from "footnote"

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 "footnote"?
"footnote" is spelled F-O-O-T-N-O-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfʊtˌnəʊt/.
What does "footnote" mean?
As a noun, "footnote" means: A short piece of text, often numbered, placed at the bottom of a printed page, that adds a comment, citation, reference etc, to a designated part of the main text.
What words are commonly confused with "footnote"?
"footnote" is commonly confused with "fortnite". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "footnote"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "footnote" is /ˈfʊtˌnəʊt/. 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 "footnote"?
From foot + note. 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 "footnote", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Flanagan#23,272frontman#23,277furthest#23,278Eurozone#23,265

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

glanced11 variantsesoteric11 variantshardness11 variantshotspot11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list