masturbate

/ˈmæ.stə.beɪt/

//ˈmæ.stə.beɪt// verb

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

"masturbate" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“masturbate” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #23,033 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#23,033
frequency rank, English
10
letters
15
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To stimulate oneself sexually, especially by use of one’s hand or a sex toy made for this purpose, often to the point of ejaculation or orgasm.

Key facts for masturbate
PropertyValue
Headwordmasturbate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈmæ.stə.beɪt/
Letters10
Frequency rank#23,033
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “masturbate” 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). masturbate 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 masturbate is 10 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmæ.stə.beɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #23,033 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for masturbate, with forms such as "amsturbate", "massturbate", and "mastrubate". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: A back-formation from masturbation, or else from Latin masturbātus (see -ate), past participle of masturbor. Further derivation of the Latin verb is uncertain; see masturbor for more. The correct English form is masturbate, spelled M-A-S-T-U-R-B-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To stimulate oneself sexually, especially by use of one’s hand or a sex toy made for this purpose, often to the point of ejaculation or orgasm.
  2. 2
    To manually or by other means than one's own genitals stimulate someone else's genitals sexually.
  3. 3
    To stimulate or please oneself by means of anything, not necessarily sexual, that does not get them anywhere; something that wastes their time; something that does not help others or achieve any important goal.

Etymology

A back-formation from masturbation, or else from Latin masturbātus (see -ate), past participle of masturbor. Further derivation of the Latin verb is uncertain; see masturbor for more.

Synonyms

bash one outbash the bishopbatebeat offbeat the meatchoke the chickencrank the hogdiddlefapflick one's beanflog the donggoonhave fun with Dick and Janejack itjack offjerk offjilljill offjork itknock one offknock one outplay with oneselfpolish the polerub one outslap the salamispank the monkeystroke ittickle the sausagetoss offwankwax the dolphinwhack offabusebeat itcrank one outfrigjerk itjerk the gherkinmasturbatemastuprateplay pocket poolpleasure oneselfself-abuseself-polluteservice oneselfskeetstroketosstouch oneselfwank off

This word in other languages

masturbarse(Español)masturber(Français)masturbieren(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: amsturbate,massturbate,mastrubate,mastturbate,mastubrate,masturabte,masturbaet,masturbatte,masturbbate,masturbtae,masturrbate,masutrbate,matsurbate,mmasturbate,msaturbate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

amsturbate2massturbate1mastrubate2mastturbate1mastubrate2masturabte2masturbaet2masturbatte1
Edit distance from "masturbate"

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 "masturbate"?
"masturbate" is spelled M-A-S-T-U-R-B-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmæ.stə.beɪt/.
What does "masturbate" mean?
As a verb, "masturbate" means: To stimulate oneself sexually, especially by use of one’s hand or a sex toy made for this purpose, often to the point of ejaculation or orgasm.
What are common misspellings of "masturbate"?
Common misspellings include "amsturbate", "massturbate", "mastrubate", "mastturbate", "mastubrate". The correct spelling is "masturbate".
How do you pronounce "masturbate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "masturbate" is /ˈmæ.stə.beɪt/. 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 "masturbate"?
A back-formation from masturbation, or else from Latin masturbātus (see -ate), past participle of masturbor. Further derivation of the Latin verb is uncertain; see masturbor for more. 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 “masturbate”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is M-A-S-T-U-R-B-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈmæ.stə.beɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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