mettlesome

/ˈmɛtəlsəm/

//ˈmɛtəlsəm// adj

"mettlesome" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mettlesome” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Marked by mettle or bravery; courageous.

Corpus desk

Index EN-mettlesome · mettlesome · English

mettlesome · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "M" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for mettlesome
PropertyValue
Headwordmettlesome
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈmɛtəlsəm/
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “mettlesome” in English

mettlesomesits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

mettlesome is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈmɛtəlsəm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Marked by mettle or bravery; courageous.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for mettlesome in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From mettle + -some. The correct English form is mettlesome, spelled M-E-T-T-L-E-S-O-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Marked by mettle or bravery; courageous.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The instant Haley touched the saddle, the mettlesome creature bounded from the earth with a sudden spring, that threw his master sprawling, some feet off, on the soft, dry turf.
  2. Among them was the "West Country" driver, Swain, of Bude, over the Great Central, who reminded me irresistibly of a hunter putting a particularly mettlesome steed at the fences.

Etymology

From mettle + -some.

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

How do you spell "mettlesome"?
"mettlesome" is spelled M-E-T-T-L-E-S-O-M-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɛtəlsəm/.
What does "mettlesome" mean?
As an adjective, "mettlesome" means: Marked by mettle or bravery; courageous.
How do you pronounce "mettlesome"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mettlesome" is /ˈmɛtəlsəm/. 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 "mettlesome"?
From mettle + -some. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list