quid pro quo
/ˌkwɪd.pɹəʊˈkwəʊ/
"quid-pro-quo" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“quid pro quo” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 12
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Something which is understood as something else; an equivocation.
Corpus desk
Index EN-quid-pro-quo · quid pro quo · English
quid pro quo · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 12 letters
- VOW-5 5 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "Q" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | quid pro quo |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌkwɪd.pɹəʊˈkwəʊ/ |
| Letters | 12 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “quid pro quo” in English
Rare enough to double-check
quid pro quo is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌkwɪd.pɹəʊˈkwəʊ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 6 senses are on record.
quid pro quo doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin quid prō quō (literally “something for something”). The correct English form is quid pro quo, spelled Q-U-I-D- -P-R-O- -Q-U-O.
Definition
- 1Something which is understood as something else; an equivocation.
- 2Substitution of one drug for another.
- 3Something which is offered or asked for in exchange for something else.
- 4A usually non-monetary exchange transaction, or series or process of exchange transactions.
- 5A usually non-monetary exchange transaction, or series or process of exchange transactions.
- 6Sexual harassment in which a person in a workplace implicitly or explicitly requires sexual favours in exchange for something.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how quid pro quo appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
The misunderstanding of the word or the quid pro quo is the unintentional pun, and is related to it exactly as folly is to wit.
“Is it simply a wild fantasy, or a mistake on the part of the old man — some impossible quid pro quo?”
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin quid prō quō (literally “something for something”).
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.