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hamilton

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

Letters

8 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "hamilton", 8-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 "hamilton" 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 "hamilton" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

Hamilton is aEnglishname. It means: A Scottish surname from Old English. Pronounced /ˈhæmɪltən/. It ranks #4,240 in English word frequency. Often confused with Hilton and Hampton.

Key facts for Hamilton
PropertyValue
HeadwordHamilton
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechName
IPA/ˈhæmɪltən/
Letters8
Frequency rank#4,240
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

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

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for Hamilton is 8 letters long, classified as aname, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈhæmɪltən/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,240 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 78 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 12 documented wrong-spelling variants for Hamilton, with forms such as "ahmilton", "haimlton", and "hamillton". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "Hilton", "Hampton", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old English *Hameldūne, from hamel (“blunt, flat-topped”) + dūne (“hill”). The Scottish surname is from the place in Leicestershire. The dollar-bill sense is from the portrait of Alexander Hamilton featured on it. 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 Hamilton, spelled H-A-M-I-L-T-O-N, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A Scottish surname from Old English.
  2. 2
    A male given name transferred from the surname.
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    A Scottish dukedom.
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    A town in South Lanarkshire council area, Scotland; named for the Clan Hamilton (OS grid ref NS7255).
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    A city in Waikato, North Island, New Zealand; named for Cpt. John Fane Charles Hamilton, a commander in the Tauranga Campaign.
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Etymology

From Old English *Hameldūne, from hamel (“blunt, flat-topped”) + dūne (“hill”). The Scottish surname is from the place in Leicestershire. The dollar-bill sense is from the portrait of Alexander Hamilton featured on it.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ahmilton,haimlton,hamillton,hamilotn,hamiltno,hamiltonn,hamiltton,hamitlon,hamliton,hammilton,hhamilton,hmailton

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for Hamilton

Misspelling Variants of "Hamilton"

ahmilton8haimlton8hamillton9hamilotn8hamiltno8hamiltonn9hamiltton9hamitlon8
Misspelling Variants of "Hamilton"

Frequency rank: #4,240 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Hamilton"?
"Hamilton" is spelled H-A-M-I-L-T-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhæmɪltən/.
What does "Hamilton" mean?
As a name, "Hamilton" means: A Scottish surname from Old English.
What words are commonly confused with "Hamilton"?
"Hamilton" is commonly confused with "Hilton", "Hampton". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Hamilton"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Hamilton" is /ˈhæmɪltən/. 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 "Hamilton"?
From Old English *Hameldūne, from hamel (“blunt, flat-topped”) + dūne (“hill”). The Scottish surname is from the place in Leicestershire. The dollar-bill sense is from the portrait of Alexander Hamilton featured on it. 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter H 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.