meander

/miˈæn.də(ɹ)/

//miˈæn.də(ɹ)// noun

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

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

The verdict

“meander” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #42,263. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#42,263
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One of the turns of a winding, crooked, or involved course.

Corpus desk

Index EN-meander · meander · English

meander · rank #42,263 · 10 variants · 10 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #42,263
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 10 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH McAvoy

Nearest frequency peer: McAvoy (-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 “meander”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “meander” 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).

meander vs Mendes
57% similar
meander vs Mendez
57% similar
meander vs Mendel
57% similar

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

Key facts for meander
PropertyValue
Headwordmeander
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/miˈæn.də(ɹ)/
Letters7
Frequency rank#42,263
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs10
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “meander”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).meanderlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “McAvoy” (#42,262), “Menon” (#42,264), “mazes” (#42,261). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “meander” is #42,263. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around meander (IPA /miˈæn.də(ɹ)/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #42,263 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for meander, with forms such as "emander", "maender", and "meadner". 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 10 confusable-pair relationships, "Mendes", "Mendez", "Mendel", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin Maeander, from Ancient Greek Μαίανδρος (Maíandros) – a river in Asia Minor (present day Turkey) known for its winding course (modern Turkish Menderes). The correct English form is meander, spelled M-E-A-N-D-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One of the turns of a winding, crooked, or involved course.
  2. 2
    One of a series of regular sinuous curves, bends, loops, turns, or windings in the channel of a river, stream, or other watercourse
  3. 3
    A tortuous or winding journey.
  4. 4
    Synonym of Greek key, a decorative border; fretwork.
  5. 5
    A self-avoiding closed curve which intersects a line a number of times.
  6. 6
    A path on which the directions, distances, and elevations are noted, as a part of a land survey.
  7. 7
    A decorative border consisting of a repeated linear motif, particularly of intersecting perpendicular lines.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. the meanders of an old river, or of the veins and arteries in the body
  2. See, how the streams advancing to the main, / Through crooked channels draw their crystal train! / While lingering thus they in meanders glide, / They scatter verdant life on either side.

Etymology

From Latin Maeander, from Ancient Greek Μαίανδρος (Maíandros) – a river in Asia Minor (present day Turkey) known for its winding course (modern Turkish Menderes).

This word in other languages

meandro(Español)méandre(Français)Windung(Deutsch)meandro(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • emander
  • maender
  • meadner
  • meandder
  • meanderr
  • meandre
  • meanedr
  • meannder
  • menader
  • mmeander

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

emander2maender2meadner2meandder1meanderr1meandre2meanedr2meannder1
Edit distance from "meander"

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 "meander"?
"meander" is spelled M-E-A-N-D-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /miˈæn.də(ɹ)/.
What does "meander" mean?
As a noun, "meander" means: One of the turns of a winding, crooked, or involved course.
What words are commonly confused with "meander"?
"meander" is commonly confused with "Mendes", "Mendez", "Mendel". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "meander"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "meander" is /miˈæn.də(ɹ)/. 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 "meander"?
From Latin Maeander, from Ancient Greek Μαίανδρος (Maíandros) – a river in Asia Minor (present day Turkey) known for its winding course (modern Turkish Menderes). 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 "meander", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Mercier#42,265Mideast#42,269Madigan#42,252macular#42,250

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

littoral10 variantsMonahan10 variantslabours10 variantskleenex10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list