godfather

/ˈɡɑdfɑðɚ/

//ˈɡɑdfɑðɚ// noun

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

"godfather" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“godfather” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,243. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,243
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A man present at the christening of a baby who promises to help raise the child in a Christian manner; a male godparent who sponsors the baptism of a child.

Corpus desk

Index EN-godfather · godfather · English

godfather · rank #16,243 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #16,243
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH gg

Nearest frequency peer: gg (-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 “godfather”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “godfather” 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).

godfather vs godmother
78% similar

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

Key facts for godfather
PropertyValue
Headwordgodfather
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɡɑdfɑðɚ/
Letters9
Frequency rank#16,243
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “godfather”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).godfatherlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “gg” (#16,242), “gould” (#16,244), “gran” (#16,245). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “godfather” is #16,243. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around godfather (IPA /ˈɡɑdfɑðɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #16,243 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for godfather, with forms such as "gdofather", "ggodfather", and "godafther". 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, "godmother", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English godfader, from Old English godfæder (“godfather”), equivalent to god- + father. Cognate with Old Saxon godfadar (“godfather”), Middle Dutch godvader (“godfather”), Danish gudfader, gudfar (“godfather”), Swedish gudfader, gudfar (“godfath… The correct English form is godfather, spelled G-O-D-F-A-T-H-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A man present at the christening of a baby who promises to help raise the child in a Christian manner; a male godparent who sponsors the baptism of a child.
  2. 2
    Someone who plays a key role in fostering the development of something.
  3. 3
    A mafia leader.
  4. 4
    A small post which is used in repairing a fence. For instance attached to and supporting an existing broken fence post.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The man often touted as the godfather of AI has quit Google, citing concerns over the flood of misinformation, the possibility for AI to upend the job market, and the “existential risk” posed by the creation of a true digital intelligence.
  2. “They are trying to kill the messenger with the bad news, it’s crazy,” said Dr James Hansen, known as the godfather of climate science and previously director of Giss for more than 30 years.

Etymology

From Middle English godfader, from Old English godfæder (“godfather”), equivalent to god- + father. Cognate with Old Saxon godfadar (“godfather”), Middle Dutch godvader (“godfather”), Danish gudfader, gudfar (“godfather”), Swedish gudfader, gudfar (“godfather”), Icelandic guðfaðir (“godfather”).

Synonyms

godpa

This word in other languages

padrino(Español)parrain(Français)Pate(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • gdofather
  • ggodfather
  • godafther
  • goddfather
  • godfahter
  • godfatehr
  • godfatherr
  • godfathher
  • godfathre
  • godfatther
  • godffather
  • godftaher
  • gofdather
  • ogdfather

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

gdofather2ggodfather1godafther2goddfather1godfahter2godfatehr2godfatherr1godfathher1
Edit distance from "godfather"

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 "godfather"?
"godfather" is spelled G-O-D-F-A-T-H-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡɑdfɑðɚ/.
What does "godfather" mean?
As a noun, "godfather" means: A man present at the christening of a baby who promises to help raise the child in a Christian manner; a male godparent who sponsors the baptism of a child.
What words are commonly confused with "godfather"?
"godfather" is commonly confused with "godmother". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "godfather"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "godfather" is /ˈɡɑdfɑðɚ/. 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 "godfather"?
From Middle English godfader, from Old English godfæder (“godfather”), equivalent to god- + father. Cognate with Old Saxon godfadar (“godfather”), Middle Dutch godvader (“godfather”), Danish gudfader, gudfar (“godfather”), Swedish gudfader, gudfar... 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 "godfather", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

federally#16,233episcopal#16,225enchanted#16,223medically#16,277

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

excellency14 variantscomposing14 variantsNicholson14 variantsoccupations14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list