madman

/ˈmædmən/

//ˈmædmən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“madman” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #21,853. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#21,853
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
19
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A man who is insane or mentally disturbed.

Corpus desk

Index EN-madman · madman · English

madman · rank #21,853 · 9 variants · 19 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #21,853
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 19 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH maniac

Nearest frequency peer: maniac (+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 “madman”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “madman” 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).

madman vs mama
67% similar
madman vs MDMA
0% similar
madman vs mamma
67% similar

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

Key facts for madman
PropertyValue
Headwordmadman
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmædmən/
Letters6
Frequency rank#21,853
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs19
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “madman”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “maniac” (#21,854), “lineman” (#21,850), “McNamara” (#21,857). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “madman” is #21,853. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around madman (IPA /ˈmædmən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #21,853 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for madman, with forms such as "amdman", "madamn", and "maddman". 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 19 confusable-pair relationships, "mama", "MDMA", "mamma", 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 mad + -man. The correct English form is madman, spelled M-A-D-M-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A man who is insane or mentally disturbed.
  2. 2
    A person who makes risky and questionable decisions.
  3. 3
    A daredevil.

Etymology

From mad + -man.

This word in other languages

loco(Español)fou(Français)Irrer(Deutsch)louco(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amdman
  • madamn
  • maddman
  • madmann
  • madmman
  • madmna
  • mamdan
  • mdaman
  • mmadman

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

amdman2madamn2maddman1madmann1madmman1madmna2mamdan2mdaman2
Edit distance from "madman"

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 "madman"?
"madman" is spelled M-A-D-M-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmædmən/.
What does "madman" mean?
As a noun, "madman" means: A man who is insane or mentally disturbed.
What words are commonly confused with "madman"?
"madman" is commonly confused with "mama", "MDMA", "mamma". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "madman"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "madman" is /ˈmædmən/. 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 "madman"?
From mad + -man. 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 "madman", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

maniac#21,854Lesley#21,847Mendes#21,863Kimmel#21,839

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

Grover9 variantsGalway9 variantsenvious9 variantsseaweed9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list