porter

/ˈpɔɹtɚ/

//ˈpɔɹtɚ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“porter” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,375. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,375
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who carries luggage and related objects.

Corpus desk

Index EN-porter · porter · English

porter · rank #7,375 · 9 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,375
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pond

Nearest frequency peer: pond (-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 “porter”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “porter” 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).

porter vs power
67% similar
porter vs ports
67% similar
porter vs Porto
50% similar

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

Key facts for porter
PropertyValue
Headwordporter
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpɔɹtɚ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#7,375
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “porter”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “pond” (#7,374), “portions” (#7,376), “pity” (#7,373). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “porter” is #7,375. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around porter (IPA /ˈpɔɹtɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #7,375 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for porter, with forms such as "oprter", "poretr", and "porrter". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "power", "ports", "Porto", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English porter, portere, portier, borrowed from Anglo-Norman portour and Old French porteor, from Late Latin portātor, from past participle of Latin portāre (“to carry”). By surface analysis, port (“to carry”) + -er. The correct English form is porter, spelled P-O-R-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who carries luggage and related objects.
  2. 2
    An ant having the specialized role of carrying.
  3. 3
    One who ports software (makes it usable on another platform).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. By the time I reached the train station I was exhausted, but fortunately there was a porter waiting.
  2. Achilles! a drayman, a porter, a very camel.

Etymology

From Middle English porter, portere, portier, borrowed from Anglo-Norman portour and Old French porteor, from Late Latin portātor, from past participle of Latin portāre (“to carry”). By surface analysis, port (“to carry”) + -er.

This word in other languages

mozo(Español)porteur(Français)Gepäckträger(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • oprter
  • poretr
  • porrter
  • porterr
  • portre
  • portter
  • potrer
  • pporter
  • proter

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of porter - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

oprter2poretr2porrter1porterr1portre2portter1potrer2pporter1
Edit distance from "porter"

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 "porter"?
"porter" is spelled P-O-R-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɔɹtɚ/.
What does "porter" mean?
As a noun, "porter" means: A person who carries luggage and related objects.
What words are commonly confused with "porter"?
"porter" is commonly confused with "power", "ports", "Porto". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "porter"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "porter" is /ˈpɔɹtɚ/. 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 "porter"?
From Middle English porter, portere, portier, borrowed from Anglo-Norman portour and Old French porteor, from Late Latin portātor, from past participle of Latin portāre (“to carry”). By surface analysis, port (“to carry”) + -er. 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 "porter", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Ottawa#7,371needle#7,367rushed#7,387Martha#7,360

Similar misspelling depth

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

scales9 variantsslower9 variantsintact9 variantshazard9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list