mitten

/ˈmɪt.n̩/

//ˈmɪt.n̩// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"mitten" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mitten” is uncommon English (frequency #54,341 among 4,057 “M” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#54,341
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A type of glove or garment that covers a hand with a separate sheath for the thumb, but not for other fingers, which are either enclosed in a single section or left uncovered.

Corpus desk

Index EN-mitten · mitten · English

mitten · rank #54,341 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #54,341
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH Mok

Nearest frequency peer: Mok (+2 rank slots)

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.

Long-tail ranks near “mitten”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “mitten” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for mitten
PropertyValue
Headwordmitten
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmɪt.n̩/
Letters6
Frequency rank#54,341
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “mitten” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).mittenfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Mok” (#54,343), “microgravity” (#54,336), “MPD” (#54,346). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “mitten” is #54,341. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

mitten is uncommon English at frequency #54,341 among 4,057 “M” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈmɪt.n̩/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for mitten in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English myteyne, from Old French mitaine (Modern French mitaine), of unclear origin; possibly from mite, miste (“playful name for cat”) + -aine. Alternatively, mitaine may be from Old High German mittamo (“half”), superlative of mitti (“midpoint… The correct English form is mitten, spelled M-I-T-T-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A type of glove or garment that covers a hand with a separate sheath for the thumb, but not for other fingers, which are either enclosed in a single section or left uncovered.
  2. 2
    The paw of a cat or dog that is of a different color from the main body.
  3. 3
    A romantic rejection; dismissal of a lover.
  4. 4
    A boxing glove.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. to give someone the mitten; to get the mitten

Etymology

From Middle English myteyne, from Old French mitaine (Modern French mitaine), of unclear origin; possibly from mite, miste (“playful name for cat”) + -aine. Alternatively, mitaine may be from Old High German mittamo (“half”), superlative of mitti (“midpoint”), from Proto-Germanic *midjô, *midją (“middle, center”), from Proto-Indo-European *médʰyos (“between, in the middle, center”). Compare Catalan mitana, Medieval Latin mitta, mitana, and Occitan mitana.

This word in other languages

manopla(Español)moufle(Français)Fäustling(Deutsch)fora(Português)

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

How do you spell "mitten"?
"mitten" is spelled M-I-T-T-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɪt.n̩/.
What does "mitten" mean?
As a noun, "mitten" means: A type of glove or garment that covers a hand with a separate sheath for the thumb, but not for other fingers, which are either enclosed in a single section or left uncovered.
How do you pronounce "mitten"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mitten" is /ˈmɪt.n̩/. 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 "mitten"?
From Middle English myteyne, from Old French mitaine (Modern French mitaine), of unclear origin; possibly from mite, miste (“playful name for cat”) + -aine. Alternatively, mitaine may be from Old High German mittamo (“half”), superlative of mitti ... 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "mitten", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

McGinn#54,329Nettie#54,353lulled#54,317ordain#54,367

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list