mon

Name: mon, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/mɑn/

//mɑn// noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“mon” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #8,828) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#8,828
frequency rank, English: 4,057
“M” headwords: 20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The former currency of Japan until 1870, before the yen.

Corpus desk

Index EN-mon · mon · English

mon · rank #8,828 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

FREQ-COMMON #8,828
LEN-MID 3 letters
VOW-1 1 vowel
CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
VAR-0 0 variants
BOOK-MID 4,057
PHOTO-FINISH moms

Nearest frequency peer: moms (-1 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.

mindset

91,176
mistress

91,175
moms

91,174
mon

91,173
monkeys

91,172
morality

91,171

What this shows Bars show where “mon” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

mon vs my

33% similar

mon vs Mr

0% similar

mon vs MS

0% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for mon
Property	Value
Headword	mon
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/mɑn/
Letters	3
Frequency rank	#8,828
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	20
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mon” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). mon lands here:

#8,828

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for mon is neighbouring look-alikes ("my", "Mr", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /mɑn/. Frequency #8,828 among 4,057 “M” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Zero misspellings are on record for mon in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "my", "Mr", "MS", 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 Japanese 文 (mon). The correct English form is mon, spelled M-O-N.

Definition

1
The former currency of Japan until 1870, before the yen.
2
The former currency of the Ryukyu Kingdom until its annexation by Japan.
3
The badge or emblem of a Japanese family, especially a family of the ancient feudal nobility; typically circular and consists of conventionalized forms from nature.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

The shimonsen or shimon, originally worth four mon, but debased to two mon.

Etymology

From Japanese 文 (mon).

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "mon"?

"mon" is spelled M-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /mɑn/.

What does "mon" mean?

As a noun, "mon" means: The former currency of Japan until 1870, before the yen.

What words are commonly confused with "mon"?

"mon" is commonly confused with "my", "Mr", "MS". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "mon"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mon" is /mɑn/. 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 "mon"?

From Japanese 文 (mon). 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 "mon", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

NSA#8,834 rig#8,850 dug#8,784 URL#8,874

What to do next

You've looked up "mon". Here's where to go from here.

"mon" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "my". View pair
Usage frequency rank #8,828 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
Browse more English words in the "M" letter cohort. M–Z browse
PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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.