# peloton

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈpɛlətɒn/ · frequency rank #38,550

## Definitions
1. A group of riders formed during a cycling road race; especially, the main group of riders; the pack.
2. Synonym of platoon (“a small group of soldiers”) or section (cognate with the former; not invariably synonymous with it, depending on century of use).

## Etymology
Borrowed from French peloton (“small ball (of thread, etc.), pellet; (cycling) group of riders formed during a cycling road race; (military) small group of soldiers, platoon”), from pelote (“small ball (of thread, etc.)”) (ultimately from Latin pila (“ball; ball game; globe, sphere”) (probably referring to a ball of hair), from pilus (“strand of hair”), of uncertain origin) + -on (augmentative suffix). Doublet of platoon.

## Easily confused with
- **Peyton** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/peloton-vs-peyton)
- **proton** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/peloton-vs-proton)
- **photon** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/peloton-vs-photon)

## Common misspellings (10)
`eploton`, `pelloton`, `pelootn`, `pelotno`, `pelotonn`, `pelotton`, `peltoon`, `peolton`, `pleoton`, `ppeloton`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/peloton