messenger

Where “messenger” sits in English frequency

Definition

1. 1
   One who brings messages.
2. 2
   The secretary bird.
3. 3
   The supporting member of an aerial cable (electric power or telephone or data).
4. 4
   A person appointed to perform certain ministerial duties under bankrupt and insolvent laws, such as to take charge of the estate of the bankrupt or insolvent.
5. 5
   An instant messenger program.
6. 6
   A forerunner or harbinger.
7. 7
   A light scudding cloud preceding a storm.
8. 8
   A piece of paper, etc., blown up a string to a kite.
9. 9
   A light line with which a heavier line may be hauled e.g. from the deck of a ship to the pier.
10. 10
    A weight dropped down a line to close a Nansen bottle.
11. 11
    A messenger-at-arms.
12. 12
    A pin which travels across the pin deck to knock over another pin, usually for a strike.

Etymology

From Middle English messengere, messingere, messangere, from Old French messanger, a variant of Old French messagier (French messager), equivalent to message + -er. Doublet of messager. Displaced native Old English boda (“messenger, envoy”) and ǣrendraca (“messenger, ambassador”). For the replacement of -ager with -enger, -inger, -anger, compare passenger, harbinger, scavenger, porringer. This development may have been merely the addition of n, or it may have resulted due to contamination from other suffixes such as Middle English -ing and the rare Old French -ange, -enc, -inge, -inghe (“-ing”) for Old French -age (“-age”).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: emssenger,mesenger,mesesnger,messegner,messenegr,messengerr,messengger,messengre,messennger,messneger,mmessenger,msesenger

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of messenger - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

Frequently Asked Questions