# potato

> English word · Noun · IPA /pəˈteɪ.təʊ/ · frequency rank #5,998

## Definitions
1. A plant of species Solanum tuberosum or its edible starchy tuber.
2. A sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas)
3. A conspicuous hole in a sock or stocking.
4. A person or animal shaped like a potato, that is, with a large belly and/or short legs.
5. Metaphor for a person or thing of little value.
6. Metaphor for a person or thing of little value.
7. Metaphor for a person or thing of little value.
8. Metaphor for a person or thing of little value.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Spanish patata, itself borrowed from Taíno batata (“sweet potato”).

## Easily confused with
- **potty** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/potato-vs-potty)
- **potatoes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/potato-vs-potatoes)
- **Porto** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/porto-vs-potato)
- **Plato** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/plato-vs-potato)
- **potash** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/potash-vs-potato)

## Common misspellings (8)
`optato`, `poatto`, `potaot`, `potatto`, `pottao`, `pottato`, `ppotato`, `ptoato`

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