pistol

/ˈpɪstəl/

//ˈpɪstəl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“pistol” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,959. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,959
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A handgun

Corpus desk

Index EN-pistol · pistol · English

pistol · rank #7,959 · 9 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,959
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pierce

Nearest frequency peer: pierce (-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 “pistol”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “pistol” 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).

pistol vs postal
67% similar
pistol vs piston
83% similar
pistol vs pinto
67% similar

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

Key facts for pistol
PropertyValue
Headwordpistol
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpɪstəl/
Letters6
Frequency rank#7,959
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “pistol”

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).pistollands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “pierce” (#7,958), “printer” (#7,960), “Perth” (#7,957). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “pistol” is #7,959. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around pistol (IPA /ˈpɪstəl/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #7,959 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for pistol, with forms such as "ipstol", "pisotl", and "pisstol". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "postal", "piston", "pinto", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Probably from Middle French pistole, or via Middle English pistolet, from Middle French pistolet (“small firearm or small dagger”). The origin is unclear. If via German to Romance probably from Middle High German forms like pischulle from Czech píšťala (“fi… The correct English form is pistol, spelled P-I-S-T-O-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A handgun
  2. 2
    A handgun
  3. 3
    The mechanical component of a fuse in a bomb or torpedo responsible for firing the detonator.
  4. 4
    A lively, high-energy person.
  5. 5
    An offensive formation in which the quarterback receives the snap at a distance behind the center, but closer than in a shotgun formation, with a running back lined up behind him.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She was gregarious, opinionated, and in charge, the kind of person you'd describe as a real pistol, and I was immediately drawn to her.
  2. KENT NELSON —Until my wife Inza convinced me there was more to life. Ah, she was a real pistol, that Inza.

Etymology

Probably from Middle French pistole, or via Middle English pistolet, from Middle French pistolet (“small firearm or small dagger”). The origin is unclear. If via German to Romance probably from Middle High German forms like pischulle from Czech píšťala (“firearm”, literally “tube, pipe”), from Proto-Slavic *piščalь, from *piskati, *piščati (“to squeak, whistle”), from Proto-Balto-Slavic *pīṣk-. Alternatively, if from Romance to German, from or related to Italian pistolese (“short dagger”), from Italian Pistoia (“a Tuscan town noted for its gunsmithing”).

This word in other languages

pistola(Español)pistolet(Français)Pistole(Deutsch)pistola(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ipstol
  • pisotl
  • pisstol
  • pistlo
  • pistoll
  • pisttol
  • pitsol
  • ppistol
  • psitol

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of pistol - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ipstol2pisotl2pisstol1pistlo2pistoll1pisttol1pitsol2ppistol1
Edit distance from "pistol"

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 "pistol"?
"pistol" is spelled P-I-S-T-O-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɪstəl/.
What does "pistol" mean?
As a noun, "pistol" means: A handgun
What words are commonly confused with "pistol"?
"pistol" is commonly confused with "postal", "piston", "pinto". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pistol"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pistol" is /ˈpɪstəl/. 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 "pistol"?
Probably from Middle French pistole, or via Middle English pistolet, from Middle French pistolet (“small firearm or small dagger”). The origin is unclear. If via German to Romance probably from Middle High German forms like pischulle from Czech pí... 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 "pistol", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

pierce#7,958occupy#7,950shells#7,976mentor#7,940

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

impress9 variantsunclear9 variantsginger9 variantswizard9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list