litter

/ˈlɪt.ɚ/

//ˈlɪt.ɚ// noun

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

"litter" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“litter” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,063. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,063
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals.

Corpus desk

Index EN-litter · litter · English

litter · rank #11,063 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #11,063
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH listeners

Nearest frequency peer: listeners (-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 “litter”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “litter” 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).

litter vs liver
67% similar
litter vs lotte
67% similar
litter vs little
67% similar

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

Key facts for litter
PropertyValue
Headwordlitter
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈlɪt.ɚ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#11,063
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “litter”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “listeners” (#11,062), “Ls” (#11,064), “linguistic” (#11,061). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “litter” is #11,063. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around litter (IPA /ˈlɪt.ɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #11,063 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 13 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for litter, with forms such as "iltter", "litetr", and "litterr". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "liver", "lotte", "little", and more, 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 litere, lytere, etc., from Anglo-Norman litere, litiere, etc., from Old French litiere (“bedding; bed of loose straw; litter”), from Late Latin lectuāria (“bedding; blankets”), from Latin lectus (“bed; couch”) + -āria (“forming related n… The correct English form is litter, spelled L-I-T-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals.
  2. 2
    Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals.
  3. 3
    Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals.
  4. 4
    A mobile bed or couch transported upon or suspended from poles placed over human shoulders or animal backs.
  5. 5
    A mobile bed or couch transported upon or suspended from poles placed over human shoulders or animal backs.
  6. 6
    A mobile bed or couch transported upon or suspended from poles placed over human shoulders or animal backs.
  7. 7
    Synonym of straw, grass, etc. more generally, particularly in plaster, thatch, and mulch.
  8. 8
    An act of giving birth to a number of live young at the same time.
  9. 9
    The whole group of live young born at the same time, typically in reference to mammals or (figurative, derogatory) unpleasant people or objects.
  10. 10
    Waste or debris, originally any mess but now particularly trash left or thrown on the ground.
  11. 11
    A bed, a substrate formed from loose materials.
  12. 12
    The layer of fallen leaves and other loose organic material on the ground in a forest.
  13. 13
    Fuller's earth, clay pellets, wood chips, or other similar loose absorbent materials used for the waste of pet animals.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Quen he had made me hale and fere
  2. As pelows ben to chambres agreable So is harde strawe lytter for the stable.

Etymology

From Middle English litere, lytere, etc., from Anglo-Norman litere, litiere, etc., from Old French litiere (“bedding; bed of loose straw; litter”), from Late Latin lectuāria (“bedding; blankets”), from Latin lectus (“bed; couch”) + -āria (“forming related nouns”), from Proto-Italic *lektos (“[thing] lain upon”), from *leɣō (“to lie down”), from Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-. Cognate with French lit and litière.

This word in other languages

cama(Español)litière(Français)Streu(Deutsch)andor(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • iltter
  • litetr
  • litterr
  • littre
  • llitter
  • ltiter

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

iltter2litetr2litterr1littre2llitter1ltiter2
Edit distance from "litter"

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 "litter"?
"litter" is spelled L-I-T-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈlɪt.ɚ/.
What does "litter" mean?
As a noun, "litter" means: Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals.
What words are commonly confused with "litter"?
"litter" is commonly confused with "liver", "lotte", "little". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "litter"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "litter" is /ˈlɪt.ɚ/. 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 "litter"?
From Middle English litere, lytere, etc., from Anglo-Norman litere, litiere, etc., from Old French litiere (“bedding; bed of loose straw; litter”), from Late Latin lectuāria (“bedding; blankets”), from Latin lectus (“bed; couch”) + -āria (“forming... 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 "litter", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Irving#11,055ninety#11,078hourly#11,043hooker#11,041

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

lump6 variantsmacro6 variantsjong6 variantsIrene6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list