pedal to the metal
"pedal-to-the-metal" is a 15-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“pedal to the metal” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a phrase - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 18
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - At maximum speed.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | pedal to the metal |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Phrase |
| Letters | 18 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “pedal to the metal” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for pedal to the metal is 18 letters long, classified as a phrase. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No generated misspelling entries exist for pedal to the metal in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct English form is pedal to the metal, spelled P-E-D-A-L- -T-O- -T-H-E- -M-E-T-A-L.
Definition
- 1At maximum speed.
- 2With maximum effort.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “pedal to the metal”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-E-D-A-L- -T-O- -T-H-E- -M-E-T-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- 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.