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napoleon

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

8 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "napoleon", 8-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Wiktionary, and usage frequency ranked against an open word-frequency list covering the top 100,000 English words. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "napoleon" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "napoleon" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

Napoleon is aEnglishname. It means: Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821), a French military commander and political leader. Pronounced /nəˈpəʊ.li.ən/. Often confused with Napoleonic.

Key facts for Napoleon
PropertyValue
HeadwordNapoleon
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechName
IPA/nəˈpəʊ.li.ən/
Letters8
Frequency rank#10,091
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of Napoleon in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for Napoleon is 8 letters long, classified as aname, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /nəˈpəʊ.li.ən/. Corpus data places it at rank #10,091 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 13 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for Napoleon, with forms such as "anpoleon", "naopleon", and "naploeon". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Napoleonic", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French Napoléon, from Italian Napoleone, name of an early saint, of uncertain origin; possibly from the Germanic clan name Nibelung. By folk etymology explained as Napoli (“Naples”) + leone (“lion”). Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is Napoleon, spelled N-A-P-O-L-E-O-N, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821), a French military commander and political leader.
  2. 2
    A male given name from Italian sometimes given in honor of the French emperor.
  3. 3
    A village in Silesia, Poland.
  4. 4
    A number of places in the United States:
  5. 5
    A number of places in the United States:
  6. 6
    A number of places in the United States:
  7. 7
    A number of places in the United States:
  8. 8
    A number of places in the United States:
  9. 9
    A number of places in the United States:
  10. 10
    A number of places in the United States:
  11. 11
    A number of places in the United States:
  12. 12
    A number of places in the United States:
  13. 13
    A surname.

Etymology

From French Napoléon, from Italian Napoleone, name of an early saint, of uncertain origin; possibly from the Germanic clan name Nibelung. By folk etymology explained as Napoli (“Naples”) + leone (“lion”).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: anpoleon,naopleon,naploeon,napoelon,napoleno,napoleonn,napolleon,napoloen,nappoleon,nnapoleon,npaoleon

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for Napoleon

Misspelling Variants of "Napoleon"

anpoleon8naopleon8naploeon8napoelon8napoleno8napoleonn9napolleon9napoloen8
Misspelling Variants of "Napoleon"

Frequency rank: #10,091 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Napoleon"?
"Napoleon" is spelled N-A-P-O-L-E-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /nəˈpəʊ.li.ən/.
What does "Napoleon" mean?
As a name, "Napoleon" means: Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821), a French military commander and political leader.
What words are commonly confused with "Napoleon"?
"Napoleon" is commonly confused with "Napoleonic". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Napoleon"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Napoleon" is /nəˈpəʊ.li.ən/. 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 "Napoleon"?
From French Napoléon, from Italian Napoleone, name of an early saint, of uncertain origin; possibly from the Germanic clan name Nibelung. By folk etymology explained as Napoli (“Naples”) + leone (“lion”). 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter N in our English index:

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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.