Oedipus

/ˈɛdɪpəs/

//ˈɛdɪpəs// name

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

"oedipus" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Oedipus” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #34,210. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#34,210
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A son of Laius and Jocasta, who unwittingly killed his father and married his mother.

Corpus desk

Index EN-oedipus · Oedipus · English

Oedipus · rank #34,210 · 9 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #34,210
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH oceanography

Nearest frequency peer: oceanography (-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 “Oedipus”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “Oedipus” 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).

Oedipus vs odious
57% similar

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

Key facts for Oedipus
PropertyValue
HeadwordOedipus
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈɛdɪpəs/
Letters7
Frequency rank#34,210
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “Oedipus”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “oceanography” (#34,209), “offsetting” (#34,211), “nymph” (#34,208). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “Oedipus” is #34,210. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around Oedipus (IPA /ˈɛdɪpəs/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #34,210 among 1,431 “O” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A son of Laius and Jocasta, who unwittingly killed his father and married his mother.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for Oedipus, with forms such as "eodipus", "odeipus", and "oeddipus". 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, "odious", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From the Latin Oedipus, from the Ancient Greek Οἰδίπους (Oidípous, “swollen foot”). The correct English form is Oedipus, spelled O-E-D-I-P-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    A son of Laius and Jocasta, who unwittingly killed his father and married his mother.

Etymology

From the Latin Oedipus, from the Ancient Greek Οἰδίπους (Oidípous, “swollen foot”).

This word in other languages

Edipo(Español)Œdipe(Français)Ödipus(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eodipus
  • odeipus
  • oeddipus
  • oedippus
  • oedipsu
  • oedipuss
  • oediups
  • oedpius
  • oeidpus

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Oedipus - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

eodipus2odeipus2oeddipus1oedippus1oedipsu2oedipuss1oediups2oedpius2
Edit distance from "Oedipus"

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 "Oedipus"?
"Oedipus" is spelled O-E-D-I-P-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛdɪpəs/.
What does "Oedipus" mean?
As a proper noun, "Oedipus" means: A son of Laius and Jocasta, who unwittingly killed his father and married his mother.
What words are commonly confused with "Oedipus"?
"Oedipus" is commonly confused with "odious". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Oedipus"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Oedipus" is /ˈɛdɪpəs/. 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 "Oedipus"?
From the Latin Oedipus, from the Ancient Greek Οἰδίπους (Oidípous, “swollen foot”). 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 "Oedipus", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Orpheus#34,213muddled#34,201mitzvah#34,198mingled#34,197

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

nymph9 variantsnecked9 variantspeachy9 variantspearly9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list