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jester

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 "jester", 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 "jester" 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 "jester" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

jester is aEnglishnoun. It means: One who jests, jokes or teases. Pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɛs.tə/. Often confused with Jeter and jest.

Key facts for jester
PropertyValue
Headwordjester
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈd͡ʒɛs.tə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#30,465
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

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

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for jester is 6 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈd͡ʒɛs.tə/. Corpus data places it at rank #30,465 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 9 documented wrong-spelling variants for jester, with forms such as "ejster", "jesetr", and "jesster". 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, "Jeter", "jest", "Jesse", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gestour; equivalent to jest + -er. 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 jester, spelled J-E-S-T-E-R, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who jests, jokes or teases.
  2. 2
    A person in colourful garb and fool's cap who amused a medieval and early modern royal or noble court.
  3. 3
    Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the Southeast Asian genus Symbrenthia.

Etymology

From Middle English gestour; equivalent to jest + -er.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ejster,jesetr,jesster,jesterr,jestre,jestter,jetser,jjester,jseter

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for jester

Misspelling Variants of "jester"

ejster6jesetr6jesster7jesterr7jestre6jestter7jetser6jjester7
Misspelling Variants of "jester"

Frequency rank: #30,465 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "jester"?
"jester" is spelled J-E-S-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈd͡ʒɛs.tə/.
What does "jester" mean?
As a noun, "jester" means: One who jests, jokes or teases.
What words are commonly confused with "jester"?
"jester" is commonly confused with "Jeter", "jest", "Jesse". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "jester"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "jester" is /ˈd͡ʒɛs.tə/. 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 "jester"?
From Middle English gestour; equivalent to jest + -er. 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 J 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.