playboy

/ˈpleɪbɔɪ/

//ˈpleɪbɔɪ// noun

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

"playboy" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“playboy” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,784. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,784
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A single man, especially a wealthy one, who devotes himself to a life of leisure and pleasure, often sexual, without commitments or responsibilities.

Corpus desk

Index EN-playboy · playboy · English

playboy · rank #13,784 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #13,784
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH planetary

Nearest frequency peer: planetary (-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 “playboy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “playboy” 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).

playboy vs playbook
75% similar

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

Key facts for playboy
PropertyValue
Headwordplayboy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpleɪbɔɪ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#13,784
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “playboy”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “planetary” (#13,783), “porcelain” (#13,785), “processors” (#13,786). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “playboy” is #13,784. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around playboy (IPA /ˈpleɪbɔɪ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #13,784 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A single man, especially a wealthy one, who devotes himself to a life of leisure and pleasure, often sexual, without commitments or responsibilities.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for playboy, with forms such as "lpayboy", "palyboy", and "plabyoy". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "playbook", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From play + boy. The correct English form is playboy, spelled P-L-A-Y-B-O-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A single man, especially a wealthy one, who devotes himself to a life of leisure and pleasure, often sexual, without commitments or responsibilities.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Exclusive nightclubs are out of style with me / 'Cause I don't associate with high society / I don't hang around playboy millionaires / I'm just an ordinary guy you left behind

Etymology

From play + boy.

Synonyms

hedonist

This word in other languages

golfo(Español)playboy(Français)Playboy(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • lpayboy
  • palyboy
  • plabyoy
  • playbboy
  • playboyy
  • playbyo
  • playoby
  • playyboy
  • pllayboy
  • plyaboy
  • pplayboy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of playboy - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

lpayboy2palyboy2plabyoy2playbboy1playboyy1playbyo2playoby2playyboy1
Edit distance from "playboy"

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 "playboy"?
"playboy" is spelled P-L-A-Y-B-O-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpleɪbɔɪ/.
What does "playboy" mean?
As a noun, "playboy" means: A single man, especially a wealthy one, who devotes himself to a life of leisure and pleasure, often sexual, without commitments or responsibilities.
What words are commonly confused with "playboy"?
"playboy" is commonly confused with "playbook". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "playboy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "playboy" is /ˈpleɪbɔɪ/. 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 "playboy"?
From play + boy. 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 "playboy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

scanner#13,805subsidy#13,817lithium#13,750lettuce#13,748

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Stafford11 variantstailored11 variantstracing11 variantsveronica11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list