redskin

noun

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

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

The verdict

“redskin” is uncommon English (frequency #73,582 among 3,094 “R” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#73,582
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A Native American.

Corpus desk

Index EN-redskin · redskin · English

redskin · rank #73,582 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #73,582
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH recreationally

Nearest frequency peer: recreationally (-2 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.

Long-tail ranks near “redskin”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “redskin” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for redskin
PropertyValue
Headwordredskin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters7
Frequency rank#73,582
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “redskin” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).redskinfalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “recreationally” (#73,580), “Rendon” (#73,584), “reclassify” (#73,579). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “redskin” is #73,582. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

redskin is uncommon English at frequency #73,582 among 3,094 “R” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A Native American.".

No misspelling variants are generated for redskin in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From red + skin. References to indigenous Americans' skin being red can be found from the 1580s, although not consistently (another European in 1584 described indigenous Americans as "yellowish"); in some cases the reference may be not to their skin color p… The correct English form is redskin, spelled R-E-D-S-K-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A Native American.

Etymology

From red + skin. References to indigenous Americans' skin being red can be found from the 1580s, although not consistently (another European in 1584 described indigenous Americans as "yellowish"); in some cases the reference may be not to their skin color per se but to their painting themselves with red paint. A letter ostensibly from 1699, which was formerly cited as the earliest reference to "red skins", was not published until 1900 and is now recognized as fake. The earliest documented instance of the term "redskin" is from a 1769 discussion between the Piankeshaw and John Wilkins, this and other early uses appear to be translating terms meaning red + skin, flesh, or people that the tribes of the Illinois / Mississippi Valley area used to refer to themselves when communicating with the French (who translated such terms as French peau-rouge) and with English-speakers (whence redskin). Piecewise doublet of Rauðskinna.

Synonyms

red manNative American

This word in other languages

Peau-Rouge(Français)Rothaut(Deutsch)

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 "redskin"?
"redskin" is spelled R-E-D-S-K-I-N.
What does "redskin" mean?
As a noun, "redskin" means: A Native American.
What is the origin of the word "redskin"?
From red + skin. References to indigenous Americans' skin being red can be found from the 1580s, although not consistently (another European in 1584 described indigenous Americans as "yellowish"); in some cases the reference may be not to their sk... 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 "redskin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

ralphie#73,569Quintin#73,564Samhain#73,609schlong#73,615

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list