philanderer

/fɪˈlæn.də.ɹɚ/

//fɪˈlæn.də.ɹɚ// noun

"philanderer" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“philanderer” is uncommon English (frequency #94,117 among 4,417 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#94,117
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One who plays at courtship; a fickle lover; a flirt (usually applies only to men).

Corpus desk

Index EN-philanderer · philanderer · English

philanderer · rank #94,117 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #94,117
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH Philipps

Nearest frequency peer: Philipps (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “philanderer”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “philanderer” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for philanderer
PropertyValue
Headwordphilanderer
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/fɪˈlæn.də.ɹɚ/
Letters11
Frequency rank#94,117
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “philanderer” in English

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Philipps” (#94,118), “Pictionary” (#94,119), “periodization” (#94,114). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “philanderer” is #94,117. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

philanderer is uncommon English at frequency #94,117 among 4,417 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /fɪˈlæn.də.ɹɚ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for philanderer in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From philander (“lover”) + -er, from Ancient Greek φίλανδρος (phílandros), from φίλος (phílos, “love”) + ἀνήρ (anḗr, “man”). The correct English form is philanderer, spelled P-H-I-L-A-N-D-E-R-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who plays at courtship; a fickle lover; a flirt (usually applies only to men).
  2. 2
    Someone who engages in casual sex, usually frequently.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. A philanderer's tie, a murderer's shoe Life's rich demand creates supply in the hand of the powers—the only vote that matters

Etymology

From philander (“lover”) + -er, from Ancient Greek φίλανδρος (phílandros), from φίλος (phílos, “love”) + ἀνήρ (anḗr, “man”).

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); 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 "philanderer"?
"philanderer" is spelled P-H-I-L-A-N-D-E-R-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /fɪˈlæn.də.ɹɚ/.
What does "philanderer" mean?
As a noun, "philanderer" means: One who plays at courtship; a fickle lover; a flirt (usually applies only to men).
How do you pronounce "philanderer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "philanderer" is /fɪˈlæn.də.ɹɚ/. 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 "philanderer"?
From philander (“lover”) + -er, from Ancient Greek φίλανδρος (phílandros), from φίλος (phílos, “love”) + ἀνήρ (anḗr, “man”). 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 "philanderer", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list