methane
/ˈmiːθeɪn/
"methane" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“methane” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #14,166 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #14,166
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The simplest aliphatic hydrocarbon, CH₄, being a constituent of natural gas, and one of the most abundant greenhouse gases.
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 | methane |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈmiːθeɪn/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #14,166 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “methane” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for methane is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmiːθeɪn/. Corpus data places it at rank #14,166 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for methane, with forms such as "emthane", "mehtane", and "metahne". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "methanol", "Meghan", "Meehan", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From methyl + -ane. The correct English form is methane, spelled M-E-T-H-A-N-E.
Definition
- 1The simplest aliphatic hydrocarbon, CH₄, being a constituent of natural gas, and one of the most abundant greenhouse gases.
- 2Any of very many derivatives of methane.
Etymology
From methyl + -ane.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: emthane,mehtane,metahne,methaen,methanne,methhane,methnae,metthane,mmethane,mtehane
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of methane - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “methane”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-E-T-H-A-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈmiːθeɪn/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “methanol” - see the side-by-side comparison. methane vs methanol
- 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.