pathogen

/ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/

//ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩// noun

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

"pathogen" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“pathogen” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #23,354. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#23,354
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An agent that can cause disease, especially an infectious microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus, protozoon or fungus.

Corpus desk

Index EN-pathogen · pathogen · English

pathogen · rank #23,354 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #23,354
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH passer

Nearest frequency peer: passer (-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 “pathogen”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “pathogen” 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).

pathogen vs pathogenic
80% similar

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

Key facts for pathogen
PropertyValue
Headwordpathogen
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/
Letters8
Frequency rank#23,354
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “pathogen”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “passer” (#23,353), “particulars” (#23,352), “pebbles” (#23,356). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “pathogen” is #23,354. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around pathogen (IPA /ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #23,354 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Dominant gloss: "An agent that can cause disease, especially an infectious microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus, protozoon or fungus.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for pathogen, with forms such as "apthogen", "pahtogen", and "pathgoen". 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, "pathogenic", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From patho- + -gen. Second element ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“lineage”) through Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “birth”) The correct English form is pathogen, spelled P-A-T-H-O-G-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An agent that can cause disease, especially an infectious microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus, protozoon or fungus.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. In his first book since the 2008 essay collection Natural Acts: A Sidelong View of Science and Nature, David Quammen looks at the natural world from yet another angle: the search for the next human pandemic, what epidemiologists call “the next big one.” His quest leads him around the world to study a variety of suspect zoonoses—animal-hosted pathogens tha…

Etymology

From patho- + -gen. Second element ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“lineage”) through Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “birth”)

This word in other languages

patógeno(Español)pathogène(Français)Krankheitserreger(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • apthogen
  • pahtogen
  • pathgoen
  • pathhogen
  • pathoegn
  • pathogenn
  • pathoggen
  • pathogne
  • patohgen
  • patthogen
  • ppathogen
  • ptahogen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

apthogen2pahtogen2pathgoen2pathhogen1pathoegn2pathogenn1pathoggen1pathogne2
Edit distance from "pathogen"

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 "pathogen"?
"pathogen" is spelled P-A-T-H-O-G-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/.
What does "pathogen" mean?
As a noun, "pathogen" means: An agent that can cause disease, especially an infectious microorganism, such as a bacterium, virus, protozoon or fungus.
What words are commonly confused with "pathogen"?
"pathogen" is commonly confused with "pathogenic". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pathogen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pathogen" is /ˈpæθəd͡ʒn̩/. 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 "pathogen"?
From patho- + -gen. Second element ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁- (“lineage”) through Ancient Greek γένος (génos, “birth”) 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 "pathogen", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

parmesan#23,351orphaned#23,346proximal#23,371minimise#23,334

Similar misspelling depth

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

reconnect12 variantsReginald12 variantsMacquarie12 variantsscariest12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list