metonymy
/mɪˈtɑnəmi/
"metonymy" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“metonymy” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The use of a single characteristic or part of an object, concept or phenomenon to identify the entire object, concept, phenomenon or a related object.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | metonymy |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /mɪˈtɑnəmi/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “metonymy” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
metonymy is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /mɪˈtɑnəmi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for metonymy, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Latin metonymia, from Ancient Greek μετωνυμίᾱ (metōnumíā, “change of name”), from μετά (metá, “other”) + ὄνομα (ónoma, “name”). The correct English form is metonymy, spelled M-E-T-O-N-Y-M-Y.
Definition
- 1The use of a single characteristic or part of an object, concept or phenomenon to identify the entire object, concept, phenomenon or a related object.
- 2A metonym.
Etymology
From Late Latin metonymia, from Ancient Greek μετωνυμίᾱ (metōnumíā, “change of name”), from μετά (metá, “other”) + ὄνομα (ónoma, “name”).
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “metonymy”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-E-T-O-N-Y-M-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /mɪˈtɑnəmi/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.