quarter

/ˈk(w)ɔː.tə/

//ˈk(w)ɔː.tə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“quarter” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,963. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,963
frequency rank, English
288
“Q” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A fourth part of something.

Corpus desk

Index EN-quarter · quarter · English

quarter · rank #1,963 · 10 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,963
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 288
  • PHOTO-FINISH providing

Nearest frequency peer: providing (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “quarter”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “quarter” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

quarter vs quartz
71% similar
quarter vs quartet
86% similar
quarter vs quieter
71% similar

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

Key facts for quarter
PropertyValue
Headwordquarter
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈk(w)ɔː.tə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#1,963
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “quarter” sits in English frequency

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).quarterlands 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 “providing” (#1,962), “regional” (#1,964), “proper” (#1,961). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around quarter (IPA /ˈk(w)ɔː.tə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,963 among 288 “Q” headwords. Wiktionary lists 26 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for quarter, with forms such as "qaurter", "qquarter", and "quaretr". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "quartz", "quartet", "quieter", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English quarter, from Anglo-Norman quarter, from Latin quartarius, from quartus. Compare Spanish cuarto (“room, quarters; quarter”). Doublet of quartier. The correct English form is quarter, spelled Q-U-A-R-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A fourth part of something.
  2. 2
    A fourth part of something.
  3. 3
    A fourth part of something.
  4. 4
    A fourth part of something.
  5. 5
    A fourth part of something.
  6. 6
    A fourth part of something.
  7. 7
    A fourth part of something.
  8. 8
    A fourth part of something.
  9. 9
    A fourth part of something.
  10. 10
    A fourth part of something.
  11. 11
    A fourth part of something.
  12. 12
    A fourth part of something.
  13. 13
    Place or position.
  14. 14
    Place or position.
  15. 15
    Place or position.
  16. 16
    Place or position.
  17. 17
    Place or position.
  18. 18
    Place or position.
  19. 19
    Place or position.
  20. 20
    The back and sides of the upper of a shoe, extending around the wearer's heel to meet the vamp.
  21. 21
    A section (of a population), especially one having a particular set of values or interests.
  22. 22
    Relations between people.
  23. 23
    Accommodation given to a defeated opponent; mercy; exemption from being killed.
  24. 24
    A quarterback.
  25. 25
    A quartermaster; a quartermaster sergeant.
  26. 26
    A quarterfinal.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I ate a quarter of the pizza.
  2. A majority of companies in the S&P 500 have at least one woman on their boards, but only about a quarter have more than two, according to a study from PwC.

Etymology

From Middle English quarter, from Anglo-Norman quarter, from Latin quartarius, from quartus. Compare Spanish cuarto (“room, quarters; quarter”). Doublet of quartier.

Synonyms

fourthfourth partone-fourthone-quarter¼trimestercourdistrictwardneighborhoodghettoboroughcapitoulate

This word in other languages

cuarto(Español)quart(Français)Viertel(Deutsch)quarto(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • qaurter
  • qquarter
  • quaretr
  • quarrter
  • quarterr
  • quartre
  • quartter
  • quatrer
  • qurater
  • uqarter

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

qaurter2qquarter1quaretr2quarrter1quarterr1quartre2quartter1quatrer2
Edit distance from "quarter"

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 "quarter"?
"quarter" is spelled Q-U-A-R-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈk(w)ɔː.tə/.
What does "quarter" mean?
As a noun, "quarter" means: A fourth part of something.
What words are commonly confused with "quarter"?
"quarter" is commonly confused with "quartz", "quartet", "quieter". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "quarter"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quarter" is /ˈk(w)ɔː.tə/. 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 "quarter"?
From Middle English quarter, from Anglo-Norman quarter, from Latin quartarius, from quartus. Compare Spanish cuarto (“room, quarters; quarter”). Doublet of quartier. 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 "quarter", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

session#1,966matters#1,954massive#1,953watched#1,975

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

plenty10 variantsaccident10 variantsclimate10 variantsentered10 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "quarter". Here's where to go from here.

  • "quarter" maps to 9 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "quartz". View pair
  • 10 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #1,963 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "Q" letter cohort. Q–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list