patron

/ˈpeɪ.tɹən/

//ˈpeɪ.tɹən// noun

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

"patron" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“patron” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #10,744. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#10,744
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One who protects or supports; a defender or advocate.

Corpus desk

Index EN-patron · patron · English

patron · rank #10,744 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #10,744
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH patriot

Nearest frequency peer: patriot (-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 “patron”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “patron” 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).

patron vs Python
50% similar
patron vs petrol
67% similar
patron vs Patton
67% similar

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

Key facts for patron
PropertyValue
Headwordpatron
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpeɪ.tɹən/
Letters6
Frequency rank#10,744
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “patron”

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).patronlands 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 “patriot” (#10,743), “Pearson” (#10,745), “paranoid” (#10,742). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “patron” is #10,744. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around patron (IPA /ˈpeɪ.tɹən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #10,744 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for patron, with forms such as "aptron", "patorn", and "patrno". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Python", "petrol", "Patton", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English patroun, patrone, from Old French patron, from Latin patrōnus, derived from pater (“father”). Doublet of padrone, Patronus, patroon, and pattern. The correct English form is patron, spelled P-A-T-R-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who protects or supports; a defender or advocate.
  2. 2
    One who protects or supports; a defender or advocate.
  3. 3
    An influential, wealthy person who supported an artist, craftsman, a scholar or a noble.
  4. 4
    A customer, as of a certain store or restaurant.
  5. 5
    A protector of a dependent, especially a master who had freed a slave but still retained some paternal rights.
  6. 6
    One who has gift and disposition of a benefice.
  7. 7
    A padrone.
  8. 8
    A property owner, a landlord, a master. (Compare patroon.)

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. patron of my life and liberty
  2. the patron of true holiness

Etymology

From Middle English patroun, patrone, from Old French patron, from Latin patrōnus, derived from pater (“father”). Doublet of padrone, Patronus, patroon, and pattern.

This word in other languages

patrón(Español)mécène(Français)Schirmherr(Deutsch)mecenas(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aptron
  • patorn
  • patrno
  • patronn
  • patrron
  • pattron
  • ppatron
  • ptaron

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

aptron2patorn2patrno2patronn1patrron1pattron1ppatron1ptaron2
Edit distance from "patron"

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 "patron"?
"patron" is spelled P-A-T-R-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpeɪ.tɹən/.
What does "patron" mean?
As a noun, "patron" means: One who protects or supports; a defender or advocate.
What words are commonly confused with "patron"?
"patron" is commonly confused with "Python", "petrol", "Patton". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "patron"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "patron" is /ˈpeɪ.tɹən/. 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 "patron"?
From Middle English patroun, patrone, from Old French patron, from Latin patrōnus, derived from pater (“father”). Doublet of padrone, Patronus, patroon, and pattern. 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 "patron", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

regain#10,751notify#10,734revolt#10,757sacked#10,762

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

proxy8 variantsMyers8 variantsMadonna8 variantslamps8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list