reactor

/ɹiˈæktɚ/

//ɹiˈæktɚ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“reactor” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,239. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,239
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who responds to a suggestion, stimulation or other influence.

Corpus desk

Index EN-reactor · reactor · English

reactor · rank #9,239 · 10 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,239
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH rand

Nearest frequency peer: rand (-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 “reactor”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “reactor” 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).

reactor vs reacts
71% similar
reactor vs rector
86% similar
reactor vs realtor
86% similar

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

Key facts for reactor
PropertyValue
Headwordreactor
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɹiˈæktɚ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#9,239
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “reactor”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “rand” (#9,238), “reef” (#9,240), “ramp” (#9,237). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “reactor” is #9,239. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around reactor (IPA /ɹiˈæktɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,239 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for reactor, with forms such as "eractor", "raector", and "reacctor". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "reacts", "rector", "realtor", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From react + -or. The correct English form is reactor, spelled R-E-A-C-T-O-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who responds to a suggestion, stimulation or other influence.
  2. 2
    A structure used to contain chemical or other reactions.
  3. 3
    A device which uses atomic energy to produce heat.
  4. 4
    A chemical substance which responds to the presence of, or contact with, another substance.
  5. 5
    An electrical component with reactance

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Altman seees his characters as total reactors; everything they do and say is in response to their environment. They do not seem to exist with lives or qualities of their own.
  2. It limits the rights of nonweapon countries to develop an export business in civilian reactor technology.

Etymology

From react + -or.

This word in other languages

reactor(Español)réacteur(Français)Reaktor(Deutsch)reator(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eractor
  • raector
  • reacctor
  • reacotr
  • reactorr
  • reactro
  • reacttor
  • reatcor
  • recator
  • rreactor

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of reactor - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

eractor2raector2reacctor1reacotr2reactorr1reactro2reacttor1reatcor2
Edit distance from "reactor"

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 "reactor"?
"reactor" is spelled R-E-A-C-T-O-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹiˈæktɚ/.
What does "reactor" mean?
As a noun, "reactor" means: A person who responds to a suggestion, stimulation or other influence.
What words are commonly confused with "reactor"?
"reactor" is commonly confused with "reacts", "rector", "realtor". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "reactor"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "reactor" is /ɹiˈæktɚ/. 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 "reactor"?
From react + -or. 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 "reactor", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

refined#9,241punched#9,236refusal#9,243pumpkin#9,234

Similar misspelling depth

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

Persian10 variantsthieves10 variantsaddicted10 variantsBelgian10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list