notorious

/nə(ʊ)ˈtɔː.ɹɪ.əs/

//nə(ʊ)ˈtɔː.ɹɪ.əs// adj

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

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

The verdict

“notorious” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,218. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,218
frequency rank, English
1,534
“N” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Senses with an unfavourable connotation.

Corpus desk

Index EN-notorious · notorious · English

notorious · rank #9,218 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,218
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,534
  • PHOTO-FINISH obey

Nearest frequency peer: obey (+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 “notorious”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “notorious” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

notorious vs notoriously
82% similar

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

Key facts for notorious
PropertyValue
Headwordnotorious
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/nə(ʊ)ˈtɔː.ɹɪ.əs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#9,218
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “notorious”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “obey” (#9,219), “Newman” (#9,216), “Olivia” (#9,220). Among 1,534 “N” headwords, “notorious” is #9,218. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around notorious (IPA /nə(ʊ)ˈtɔː.ɹɪ.əs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #9,218 among 1,534 “N” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for notorious, with forms such as "nnotorious", "nootrious", and "notoirous". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "notoriously", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Middle English notoryous, from Medieval Latin nōtōrius (“evident, known; famous, well-known; infamous”), from Latin nōtus (“known, recognized; familiar, widely known; famous, well-known; infamous”) + -tōrius (suffix forming adjectives). Nōtus is t… The correct English form is notorious, spelled N-O-T-O-R-I-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Senses with an unfavourable connotation.
  2. 2
    Senses with an unfavourable connotation.
  3. 3
    Senses with a favourable or neutral connotation.
  4. 4
    Senses with a favourable or neutral connotation.
  5. 5
    Senses with a favourable or neutral connotation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Such Men theſe had, to Miſchiefe vvholly bent, / In Villanie, notorious for their skill, / Diſhoneſt, deſp'rate, mercileſſe, and rude, / That dar'd into Damnation to intrude.
  2. You notorious ſtinkardly bearevvard, do's my breath ſmell?

Etymology

From Late Middle English notoryous, from Medieval Latin nōtōrius (“evident, known; famous, well-known; infamous”), from Latin nōtus (“known, recognized; familiar, widely known; famous, well-known; infamous”) + -tōrius (suffix forming adjectives). Nōtus is the perfect passive participle of nōscō (“to become acquainted with or learn about (something); (rare) to be familiar with, recognize”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (“to know; to recognize”). cognates * Catalan notori (“well-known”) * Middle French notoire (Anglo-Norman notoire, notoir, notore, notorie, modern French notoire (“notorious; well-known”)) * Italian notorio (“notorious; well-known”) * Portuguese notorjo (obsolete), notório (“illustrious; open, public; notorious”) * Spanish notorio (“apparent, clear, obvious; well-known”)

Synonyms

disreputableill-famedinfamousnefariousnidderingnideringnithingnotorious

Antonyms

unnotoriousunfamousacclaimedcelebrateddistinguishedeminentprestigiousprominent

This word in other languages

notorio(Español)notoire(Français)notorisch(Deutsch)famigerado(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • nnotorious
  • nootrious
  • notoirous
  • notoriosu
  • notoriouss
  • notoriuos
  • notoroius
  • notorrious
  • notroious
  • nottorious
  • ntoorious
  • ontorious

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of notorious - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

nnotorious1nootrious2notoirous2notoriosu2notoriouss1notoriuos2notoroius2notorrious1
Edit distance from "notorious"

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 "notorious"?
"notorious" is spelled N-O-T-O-R-I-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /nə(ʊ)ˈtɔː.ɹɪ.əs/.
What does "notorious" mean?
As an adjective, "notorious" means: Senses with an unfavourable connotation.
What words are commonly confused with "notorious"?
"notorious" is commonly confused with "notoriously". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "notorious"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "notorious" is /nə(ʊ)ˈtɔː.ɹɪ.əs/. 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 "notorious"?
From Late Middle English notoryous, from Medieval Latin nōtōrius (“evident, known; famous, well-known; infamous”), from Latin nōtus (“known, recognized; familiar, widely known; famous, well-known; infamous”) + -tōrius (suffix forming adjectives). ... 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 "notorious", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

oversight#9,225livestock#9,205prototype#9,233Katherine#9,202

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

outright12 variantsinnocence12 variantsinherent12 variantshumidity12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list