mind game

noun

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

The verdict

“mind game” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An attempt at using psychological manipulation against someone, in order to confuse them.

Corpus desk

Index EN-mind-game · mind game · English

mind game · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 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 mind game
PropertyValue
Headwordmind game
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “mind game” in English

mind gameranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

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

Rare enough to double-check

mind game is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for mind game, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct English form is mind game, spelled M-I-N-D- -G-A-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An attempt at using psychological manipulation against someone, in order to confuse them.
  2. 2
    A game or puzzle involving logical thinking.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Denmark coach Morten Olsen's pre-match warning that the Netherlands were simply better than his side could easily have been dismissed as mind games.
  2. Your mind games hit like grenades

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 "mind game"?
"mind game" is spelled M-I-N-D- -G-A-M-E.
What does "mind game" mean?
As a noun, "mind game" means: An attempt at using psychological manipulation against someone, in order to confuse them.
What language does "mind game" come from?
"mind game" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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