master

/ˈmɑːs.tə/

//ˈmɑːs.tə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“master” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,250 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#1,250
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Someone who has control over something or someone.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

master vs mate
67% similar
master vs meter
67% similar
master vs mates
67% similar

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

Key facts for master
PropertyValue
Headwordmaster
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmɑːs.tə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#1,250
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “master” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for master is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmɑːs.tə/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,250 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 21 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for master, with forms such as "amster", "masetr", and "masster". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "mate", "meter", "mates", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English maister, mayster, meister (noun) and maistren (verb), from Old English mǣster, mæġster, mæġester, mæġister, magister (“master”), from Latin magister (“chief, teacher, leader”), from Old Latin magester, from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s (a… The correct English form is master, spelled M-A-S-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Someone who has control over something or someone.
  2. 2
    The owner of an animal or slave.
  3. 3
    The captain of a merchant ship; a master mariner.
  4. 4
    A male head of household.
  5. 5
    Someone who employs others.
  6. 6
    An expert at something.
  7. 7
    A tradesman who is qualified to teach apprentices.
  8. 8
    A male schoolteacher.
  9. 9
    A skilled artist.
  10. 10
    A man or a boy; mister. See Master.
  11. 11
    A master's degree; a type of postgraduate degree, usually undertaken after a bachelor degree.
  12. 12
    A person holding such a degree.
  13. 13
    The original of a document or of a recording.
  14. 14
    The copyright in a sound recording.
  15. 15
    The primary wide shot of a scene, into which the closeups will be edited later.
  16. 16
    A parajudicial officer (such as a referee, an auditor, an examiner, or an assessor) specially appointed to help a court with its proceedings.
  17. 17
    A device that is controlling other devices or is an authoritative source.
  18. 18
    A person holding an office of authority, especially the presiding officer.
  19. 19
    A person holding a similar office in other civic societies.
  20. 20
    Ellipsis of master key.
  21. 21
    A male dominant.

Etymology

From Middle English maister, mayster, meister (noun) and maistren (verb), from Old English mǣster, mæġster, mæġester, mæġister, magister (“master”), from Latin magister (“chief, teacher, leader”), from Old Latin magester, from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s (as in magnus (“great”), also cognate of English much and mickle) + -ester/-ister (compare minister (“servant”)). Reinforced by Old French maistre, mestre (noun) and maistriier, maister (verb) from the same Latin source. Compare also Saterland Frisian Mäster (“master”), West Frisian master (“master”), Dutch meester (“master”), German Meister (“master”). Doublet of maestro, magister, and meister.

This word in other languages

amo(Español)maître(Français)Meister(Deutsch)mestre(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: amster,masetr,masster,masterr,mastre,mastter,matser,mmaster,msater

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

amster2masetr2masster1masterr1mastre2mastter1matser2mmaster1
Edit distance from "master"

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 "master"?
"master" is spelled M-A-S-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɑːs.tə/.
What does "master" mean?
As a noun, "master" means: Someone who has control over something or someone.
What words are commonly confused with "master"?
"master" is commonly confused with "mate", "meter", "mates". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "master"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "master" is /ˈmɑːs.tə/. 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 "master"?
From Middle English maister, mayster, meister (noun) and maistren (verb), from Old English mǣster, mæġster, mæġester, mæġister, magister (“master”), from Latin magister (“chief, teacher, leader”), from Old Latin magester, from Proto-Indo-European ... 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.

Using “master”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is M-A-S-T-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈmɑːs.tə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “mate” - see the side-by-side comparison. master vs mate
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list