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glitch

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

6 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "glitch", 6-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "glitch" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "glitch" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

glitch is aEnglishnoun. It means: A problem affecting function. Pronounced /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/. Often confused with glitz and grinch.

Key facts for glitch
PropertyValue
Headwordglitch
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#16,032
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of glitch in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for glitch is 6 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/. Corpus data places it at rank #16,032 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 10 documented wrong-spelling variants for glitch, with forms such as "gglitch", "giltch", and "glicth". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "glitz", "grinch", "glitches", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Probably borrowed from Yiddish גליטש (glitsh), from German glitschig (“slippy”), from glitschen (“to slide, glide, slip”) + -ig (“-y”). Related to gleiten (“glide”). Cognate with French glisser (“to slip, slide, skid”). Popularized in the 1960s, by the US s… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is glitch, spelled G-L-I-T-C-H, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A problem affecting function.
  2. 2
    An unexpected behavior in an electrical signal, especially if the signal spontaneously returns to expected behavior after a period of time.
  3. 3
    A bug or an exploit.
  4. 4
    A genre of experimental electronic music since the 1990s, characterized by a deliberate use of sonic artifacts that would normally be viewed as unwanted noise.
  5. 5
    A sudden increase in the rotational frequency of a pulsar.

Etymology

Probably borrowed from Yiddish גליטש (glitsh), from German glitschig (“slippy”), from glitschen (“to slide, glide, slip”) + -ig (“-y”). Related to gleiten (“glide”). Cognate with French glisser (“to slip, slide, skid”). Popularized in the 1960s, by the US space program. Attested in 1962 by American astronaut John Glenn, in reference to spikes in electrical current.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: gglitch,giltch,glicth,glitcch,glitchh,glithc,glittch,gllitch,gltich,lgitch

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for glitch

Misspelling Variants of "glitch"

gglitch7giltch6glicth6glitcch7glitchh7glithc6glittch7gllitch7
Misspelling Variants of "glitch"

Frequency rank: #16,032 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "glitch"?
"glitch" is spelled G-L-I-T-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/.
What does "glitch" mean?
As a noun, "glitch" means: A problem affecting function.
What words are commonly confused with "glitch"?
"glitch" is commonly confused with "glitz", "grinch", "glitches". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "glitch"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "glitch" is /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/. 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 "glitch"?
Probably borrowed from Yiddish גליטש (glitsh), from German glitschig (“slippy”), from glitschen (“to slide, glide, slip”) + -ig (“-y”). Related to gleiten (“glide”). Cognate with French glisser (“to slip, slide, skid”). Popularized in the 1960s, b... See the full etymology section above for more details.
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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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter G in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.