nightmare

/ˈnaɪt.mɛə/

//ˈnaɪt.mɛə// noun

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

"nightmare" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“nightmare” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #5,239. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#5,239
frequency rank, English
1,534
“N” headwords
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A very unpleasant or frightening dream.

Corpus desk

Index EN-nightmare · nightmare · English

nightmare · rank #5,239 · 14 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,239
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,534
  • PHOTO-FINISH Netflix

Nearest frequency peer: Netflix (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “nightmare”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “nightmare” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for nightmare
PropertyValue
Headwordnightmare
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈnaɪt.mɛə/
Letters9
Frequency rank#5,239
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “nightmare”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Netflix” (#5,238), “operators” (#5,240), “nerve” (#5,237). Among 1,534 “N” headwords, “nightmare” is #5,239. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around nightmare (IPA /ˈnaɪt.mɛə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #5,239 among 1,534 “N” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for nightmare, with forms such as "inghtmare", "ngihtmare", and "nigghtmare". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English nyghtmare, from Old English *nihtmare, equivalent to night + mare (“evil spirit believed to afflict a sleeping person”). Cognate with Scots nichtmare and nichtmeer, Dutch nachtmerrie, Middle Low German nachtmār, German Nachtmahr. The correct English form is nightmare, spelled N-I-G-H-T-M-A-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A very unpleasant or frightening dream.
  2. 2
    Any bad, miserable, difficult or terrifying situation or experience that arouses anxiety, terror, agony or great displeasure.
  3. 3
    A demon or monster, thought to plague people while they slept and cause a feeling of suffocation and terror during sleep.
  4. 4
    A feeling of extreme anxiety or suffocation experienced during sleep; sleep paralysis.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I had a nightmare that I tried to run but could neither move nor breathe.
  2. July 18 2012, Scott Tobias, AV Club The Dark Knight Riseshttp://www.avclub.com/articles/the-dark-knight-rises-review-batman,82624/ With his crude potato-sack mask and fear-inducing toxins, The Scarecrow, a “psychopharmacologist” at an insane asylum, acts as a conjurer of nightmares, capable of turning his patients’ most terrifying anxieties against them.

Etymology

From Middle English nyghtmare, from Old English *nihtmare, equivalent to night + mare (“evil spirit believed to afflict a sleeping person”). Cognate with Scots nichtmare and nichtmeer, Dutch nachtmerrie, Middle Low German nachtmār, German Nachtmahr.

Synonyms

incubussuccubusnight hagsleep paralysis

This word in other languages

pesadilla(Español)cauchemar(Français)Albtraum(Deutsch)pesadelo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • inghtmare
  • ngihtmare
  • nigghtmare
  • nighhtmare
  • nighmtare
  • nightamre
  • nightmaer
  • nightmarre
  • nightmmare
  • nightmrae
  • nighttmare
  • nigthmare
  • nihgtmare
  • nnightmare

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of nightmare - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

inghtmare2ngihtmare2nigghtmare1nighhtmare1nighmtare2nightamre2nightmaer2nightmarre1
Edit distance from "nightmare"

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 "nightmare"?
"nightmare" is spelled N-I-G-H-T-M-A-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈnaɪt.mɛə/.
What does "nightmare" mean?
As a noun, "nightmare" means: A very unpleasant or frightening dream.
What are common misspellings of "nightmare"?
Common misspellings include "inghtmare", "ngihtmare", "nigghtmare", "nighhtmare", "nighmtare". The correct spelling is "nightmare".
How do you pronounce "nightmare"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nightmare" is /ˈnaɪt.mɛə/. 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 "nightmare"?
From Middle English nyghtmare, from Old English *nihtmare, equivalent to night + mare (“evil spirit believed to afflict a sleeping person”). Cognate with Scots nichtmare and nichtmeer, Dutch nachtmerrie, Middle Low German nachtmār, German Nachtmahr. 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 "nightmare", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

operators#5,240overnight#5,241partially#5,242Louisiana#5,232

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

spreading14 variantsconfusion14 variantscommentary14 variantsassignment14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list