octet

/ɒkˈtɛt/

//ɒkˈtɛt// noun

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

"octet" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“octet” is uncommon English (frequency #71,752 among 1,431 “O” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,752
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A group or set of eight of something.

Corpus desk

Index EN-octet · octet · English

octet · rank #71,752 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #71,752
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH oes

Nearest frequency peer: oes (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “octet”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for octet
PropertyValue
Headwordoctet
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɒkˈtɛt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#71,752
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “octet” in English

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “oes” (#71,753), “O'Donovan” (#71,750), “nucleoside” (#71,747). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “octet” is #71,752. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

octet is uncommon English at frequency #71,752 among 1,431 “O” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ɒkˈtɛt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

octet has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From oct- (“eight”) + -et. The correct English form is octet, spelled O-C-T-E-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A group or set of eight of something.
  2. 2
    A group of eight musicians performing together.
  3. 3
    A composition for such a group of musicians.
  4. 4
    A byte of eight bits. Abbreviation: o
  5. 5
    A group of three bits, representing any of eight possible values.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. An octet of waiters sang her "Happy Birthday".
  2. This is done by breaking down each set of permissions (user, group, and other) to represent an octet.

Etymology

From oct- (“eight”) + -et.

This word in other languages

octeto(Español)octuor(Français)Oktett(Deutsch)

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 "octet"?
"octet" is spelled O-C-T-E-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ɒkˈtɛt/.
What does "octet" mean?
As a noun, "octet" means: A group or set of eight of something.
How do you pronounce "octet"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "octet" is /ɒkˈtɛt/. 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 "octet"?
From oct- (“eight”) + -et. 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 "octet", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

paise#71,771Panza#71,773Naxos#71,727Pasig#71,780

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list