meathead

/ˈmitˌhɛd/

//ˈmitˌhɛd// noun

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

"meathead" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“meathead” is uncommon English (frequency #66,083 among 4,057 “M” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#66,083
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An ungainly, dull, or stupid person; someone who is lazy, disrespectful, and/or whose beliefs and philosophies clash with those of another.

Corpus desk

Index EN-meathead · meathead · English

meathead · rank #66,083 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #66,083
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH meany

Nearest frequency peer: meany (-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 “meathead”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for meathead
PropertyValue
Headwordmeathead
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmitˌhɛd/
Letters8
Frequency rank#66,083
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “meathead” in English

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).meatheadfalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “meany” (#66,082), “mealtime” (#66,081), “meningococcal” (#66,087). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “meathead” is #66,083. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

meathead is uncommon English at frequency #66,083 among 4,057 “M” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈmitˌhɛd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for meathead in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From meat + head. The term meathead is often said to come from the classic 1970s television situation comedy All In The Family, wherein main character Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) used the nickname to address his son-in-law, Michael Stivic (Rob Reiner),… The correct English form is meathead, spelled M-E-A-T-H-E-A-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    An ungainly, dull, or stupid person; someone who is lazy, disrespectful, and/or whose beliefs and philosophies clash with those of another.
  2. 2
    A large, muscular, stupid man, especially an athlete.
  3. 3
    A member of the Canadian Forces Military Police.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Gary was a hulking meathead who, when he wasn't playing football, was either hunting, fishing or getting drunk and rowdy in some topless bar.

Etymology

From meat + head. The term meathead is often said to come from the classic 1970s television situation comedy All In The Family, wherein main character Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) used the nickname to address his son-in-law, Michael Stivic (Rob Reiner), starting with the premiere episode ("Meet the Bunkers") that first aired January 12, 1971. The term was used by the character Sgt Carter on the situation comedy Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C. to refer to the title character Gomer Pyle in 1966 (season 3 episode 6). The term is also used three times in the "Star Witness" episode of the television situation comedy Green Acres, an episode that first aired January 26, 1971, exactly two weeks after the premiere of All in the Family. However, the word appeared in writing as early as 1863.

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 "meathead"?
"meathead" is spelled M-E-A-T-H-E-A-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmitˌhɛd/.
What does "meathead" mean?
As a noun, "meathead" means: An ungainly, dull, or stupid person; someone who is lazy, disrespectful, and/or whose beliefs and philosophies clash with those of another.
How do you pronounce "meathead"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "meathead" is /ˈmitˌhɛd/. 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 "meathead"?
From meat + head. The term meathead is often said to come from the classic 1970s television situation comedy All In The Family, wherein main character Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) used the nickname to address his son-in-law, Michael Stivic (Ro... 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 "meathead", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

mealtime#66,081monotype#66,104liaising#66,042largesse#66,031

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list