otaku

/əʊˈtɑːkuː/

//əʊˈtɑːkuː// noun

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

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

The verdict

“otaku” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #43,818. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#43,818
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One with an obsessive interest in something, particularly (originally derogatory) an obsessive Japanese fan of anime or manga.

Corpus desk

Index EN-otaku · otaku · English

otaku · rank #43,818 · 6 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #43,818
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH Ordovician

Nearest frequency peer: Ordovician (-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 “otaku”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “otaku” 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).

otaku vs oak
60% similar
otaku vs Ota
40% similar
otaku vs oaks
60% similar

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

Key facts for otaku
PropertyValue
Headwordotaku
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/əʊˈtɑːkuː/
Letters5
Frequency rank#43,818
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “otaku”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).otakulands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Ordovician” (#43,817), “Ovechkin” (#43,819), “orchestrate” (#43,816). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “otaku” is #43,818. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around otaku (IPA /əʊˈtɑːkuː/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #43,818 among 1,431 “O” headwords. Dominant gloss: "One with an obsessive interest in something, particularly (originally derogatory) an obsessive Japanese fan of anime or manga.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for otaku, with forms such as "oatku", "otakku", and "otauk". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "oak", "Ota", "oaks", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Japanese オタク (otaku, “anime obsessive, geek”) originally used in reference to the 1982 Macross fandom, from the honorific form お宅 (otaku, “you”), from the honorific form 宅 (taku, “home”) ("your home"). The correct English form is otaku, spelled O-T-A-K-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    One with an obsessive interest in something, particularly (originally derogatory) an obsessive Japanese fan of anime or manga.

Etymology

From Japanese オタク (otaku, “anime obsessive, geek”) originally used in reference to the 1982 Macross fandom, from the honorific form お宅 (otaku, “you”), from the honorific form 宅 (taku, “home”) ("your home").

This word in other languages

otaku(Español)otaku(Français)Otaku(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • oatku
  • otakku
  • otauk
  • otkau
  • ottaku
  • toaku

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of otaku - 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.

oatku2otakku1otauk2otkau2ottaku1toaku2
Edit distance from "otaku"

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 "otaku"?
"otaku" is spelled O-T-A-K-U. The IPA pronunciation is /əʊˈtɑːkuː/.
What does "otaku" mean?
As a noun, "otaku" means: One with an obsessive interest in something, particularly (originally derogatory) an obsessive Japanese fan of anime or manga.
What words are commonly confused with "otaku"?
"otaku" is commonly confused with "oak", "Ota", "oaks". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "otaku"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "otaku" is /əʊˈtɑːkuː/. 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 "otaku"?
From Japanese オタク (otaku, “anime obsessive, geek”) originally used in reference to the 1982 Macross fandom, from the honorific form お宅 (otaku, “you”), from the honorific form 宅 (taku, “home”) ("your home"). 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 "otaku", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Nabil#43,801Mosby#43,795phage#43,841Mensa#43,785

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

mosh6 variantsmilt6 variantsRecep6 variantsShek6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list