Know-Nothing
"know-nothing" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Know-Nothing” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 12
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A member of a secret antiforeigner political organization in the nineteenth-century United States.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Know-Nothing |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 12 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Know-Nothing” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
Know-Nothing is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A member of a secret antiforeigner political organization in the nineteenth-century United States.".
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Know-Nothing, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: Party members claimed to know nothing about the party when questioned. The correct English form is Know-Nothing, spelled K-N-O-W---N-O-T-H-I-N-G.
Definition
- 1A member of a secret antiforeigner political organization in the nineteenth-century United States.
Etymology
Party members claimed to know nothing about the party when questioned.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “Know-Nothing”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is K-N-O-W---N-O-T-H-I-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.