McLeod
/məˈklaʊd/
"mcleod" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“McLeod” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #23,900 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #23,900
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A Scottish surname from Scottish Gaelic, the anglicised form of the Gaelic Mac Leòid
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | McLeod |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /məˈklaʊd/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #23,900 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “McLeod” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for McLeod is 6 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /məˈklaʊd/. Corpus data places it at rank #23,900 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "A Scottish surname from Scottish Gaelic, the anglicised form of the Gaelic Mac Leòid".
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for McLeod, with forms such as "cmleod", "mccleod", and "mcelod". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "McLean", "Macleod", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Scottish Gaelic MacLeòid (“son of Leòd”), from Old Norse Liótr (“the Ugly (one)”), from Old Norse ljótr (“ugly, scary”). The combination tool was created in 1905 by Malcolm McLeod, a US Forest Service ranger. The correct English form is McLeod, spelled M-C-L-E-O-D.
Definition
- 1A Scottish surname from Scottish Gaelic, the anglicised form of the Gaelic Mac Leòid
Etymology
From Scottish Gaelic MacLeòid (“son of Leòd”), from Old Norse Liótr (“the Ugly (one)”), from Old Norse ljótr (“ugly, scary”). The combination tool was created in 1905 by Malcolm McLeod, a US Forest Service ranger.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: cmleod,mccleod,mcelod,mcledo,mcleodd,mclleod,mcloed,mlceod,mmcleod
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of McLeod - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "McLeod"?
What does "McLeod" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "McLeod"?
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Using “McLeod”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-C-L-E-O-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /məˈklaʊd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “McLean” - see the side-by-side comparison. McLeod vs McLean
- 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.