racketeer

/ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)/

//ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)// noun

"racketeer" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“racketeer” is uncommon English (frequency #80,788 among 21,470 “R” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#80,788
frequency rank, English
21,470
“R” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - One who commits crimes (especially fraud, bribery, loansharking, extortion etc.) to aid in running a shady or illegal business.

Key facts for racketeer
PropertyValue
Headwordracketeer
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)/
Letters9
Frequency rank#80,788
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “racketeer” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

racketeer is uncommon English at frequency #80,788 among 21,470 “R” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for racketeer, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From racket + -eer. The correct English form is racketeer, spelled R-A-C-K-E-T-E-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who commits crimes (especially fraud, bribery, loansharking, extortion etc.) to aid in running a shady or illegal business.
  2. 2
    One who instigates or has involvement with a racket.

Etymology

From racket + -eer.

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); 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 "racketeer"?
"racketeer" is spelled R-A-C-K-E-T-E-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)/.
What does "racketeer" mean?
As a noun, "racketeer" means: One who commits crimes (especially fraud, bribery, loansharking, extortion etc.) to aid in running a shady or illegal business.
How do you pronounce "racketeer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "racketeer" is /ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)/. 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 "racketeer"?
From racket + -eer. 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.

Using “racketeer”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is R-A-C-K-E-T-E-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˌɹækɪˈtɪə(ɹ)/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list