manitou

/ˈmanɪtuː/

//ˈmanɪtuː// noun

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

"manitou" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“manitou” is uncommon English (frequency #60,262 among 4,057 “M” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#60,262
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A god or spirit as the object of religious awe or ritual among some American Indians.

Corpus desk

Index EN-manitou · manitou · English

manitou · rank #60,262 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #60,262
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH maniacally

Nearest frequency peer: maniacally (-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 “manitou”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for manitou
PropertyValue
Headwordmanitou
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmanɪtuː/
Letters7
Frequency rank#60,262
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “manitou” 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).manitoufalls 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: “maniacally” (#60,261), “Manohar” (#60,263), “mangle” (#60,260). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “manitou” is #60,262. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

manitou is uncommon English at frequency #60,262 among 4,057 “M” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈmanɪtuː/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A god or spirit as the object of religious awe or ritual among some American Indians.".

Zero misspellings are on record for manitou in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Pidgin Delaware Manétto, from Unami manëtu and Munsee manútoow, later influenced by French manitou, from Cree/Montagnais manito꞉w; from Proto-Algonquian *maneto·wa (“supernatural being”). The correct English form is manitou, spelled M-A-N-I-T-O-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    A god or spirit as the object of religious awe or ritual among some American Indians.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The favourite abode of this Manitou is still shown. It is a great rock or cliff on the loneliest part of the mountains, and, … is known by the name of the Garden Rock.
  2. If it were possible to translate the comprehensive and melodious language in which he spoke, the ode might read something like the following: "Manitou! Manitou! Manitou! Thou art great, thou art good, thou art wise: Manitou! Manitou! Thou art just."

Etymology

From Pidgin Delaware Manétto, from Unami manëtu and Munsee manútoow, later influenced by French manitou, from Cree/Montagnais manito꞉w; from Proto-Algonquian *maneto·wa (“supernatural being”).

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 "manitou"?
"manitou" is spelled M-A-N-I-T-O-U. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmanɪtuː/.
What does "manitou" mean?
As a noun, "manitou" means: A god or spirit as the object of religious awe or ritual among some American Indians.
How do you pronounce "manitou"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "manitou" is /ˈmanɪtuː/. 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 "manitou"?
From Pidgin Delaware Manétto, from Unami manëtu and Munsee manútoow, later influenced by French manitou, from Cree/Montagnais manito꞉w; from Proto-Algonquian *maneto·wa (“supernatural being”). 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 "manitou", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Manohar#60,263Massoud#60,266maudlin#60,269Maugham#60,270

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list