katakana

/ˌkætəˈkænə/

//ˌkætəˈkænə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“katakana” is uncommon English (frequency #64,470 among 1,236 “K” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,470
frequency rank, English
1,236
“K” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A Japanese syllabary used when writing words borrowed from foreign languages other than Chinese, specific names of plants and animals and other jargon, onomatopoeia, or to emphasize a word or phras...

Corpus desk

Index EN-katakana · katakana · English

katakana · rank #64,470 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,470
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,236
  • PHOTO-FINISH karn

Nearest frequency peer: karn (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “katakana”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “katakana” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for katakana
PropertyValue
Headwordkatakana
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌkætəˈkænə/
Letters8
Frequency rank#64,470
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “katakana” in English

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “karn” (#64,469), “Kemi” (#64,472), “kabaddi” (#64,467). Among 1,236 “K” headwords, “katakana” is #64,470. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

katakana is uncommon English at frequency #64,470 among 1,236 “K” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌkætəˈkænə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

katakana has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Japanese 片(かた)仮(か)名(な) (katakana). The correct English form is katakana, spelled K-A-T-A-K-A-N-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A Japanese syllabary used when writing words borrowed from foreign languages other than Chinese, specific names of plants and animals and other jargon, onomatopoeia, or to emphasize a word or phrase. Also used to write the Ainu language.
  2. 2
    A character thereof.

Etymology

From Japanese 片(かた)仮(か)名(な) (katakana).

This word in other languages

katakana(Español)katakana(Français)Katakana(Deutsch)

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 "katakana"?
"katakana" is spelled K-A-T-A-K-A-N-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌkætəˈkænə/.
What does "katakana" mean?
As a noun, "katakana" means: A Japanese syllabary used when writing words borrowed from foreign languages other than Chinese, specific names of plants and animals and other jargon, onomatopoeia, or to emphasize a word or phras...
How do you pronounce "katakana"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "katakana" is /ˌkætəˈkænə/. 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 "katakana"?
From Japanese 片(かた)仮(か)名(な) (katakana). 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 "katakana", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Isaacson#64,452Ironside#64,450Laughton#64,490inductee#64,442

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list