pedal
/ˈpɛdəl/
"pedal" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“pedal” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #12,294 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #12,294
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A lever operated by one's foot that is used to control or power a machine or mechanism, such as a bicycle or piano.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | pedal |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈpɛdəl/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #12,294 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “pedal” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for pedal is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈpɛdəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #12,294 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for pedal, with forms such as "epdal", "pdeal", and "peadl". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "peel", "pell", "Perl", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French pédale, Latin pedāl(is). By surface analysis, ped- + -al. The correct English form is pedal, spelled P-E-D-A-L.
Definition
- 1A lever operated by one's foot that is used to control or power a machine or mechanism, such as a bicycle or piano.
- 2an orthopedic structure or a footlike part.
- 3An effects unit, especially one designed to be activated by being stepped on.
- 4A stirrup.
- 5The ranks of pipes played from the pedal-board of an organ.
Etymology
Borrowed from French pédale, Latin pedāl(is). By surface analysis, ped- + -al.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: epdal,pdeal,peadl,pedall,peddal,pedla,ppedal
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of pedal - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “pedal”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-E-D-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈpɛdəl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “peel” - see the side-by-side comparison. pedal vs peel
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.