reporter

/ɹɪˈpɔː.tə/

//ɹɪˈpɔː.tə// noun

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

"reporter" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“reporter” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,976 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#3,976
frequency rank, English
8
letters
12
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Someone or something that reports.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

reporter vs reports
75% similar
reporter vs resorted
75% similar
reporter vs retorted
75% similar

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

Key facts for reporter
PropertyValue
Headwordreporter
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɹɪˈpɔː.tə/
Letters8
Frequency rank#3,976
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “reporter” 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). reporter lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for reporter is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɹɪˈpɔː.tə/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,976 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for reporter, with forms such as "erporter", "reoprter", and "reporetr". 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, "reports", "resorted", "retorted", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English reportour, from Old French reporteur; equivalent to report + -er. The correct English form is reporter, spelled R-E-P-O-R-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Someone or something that reports.
  2. 2
    A journalist who investigates, edits and reports news stories for newspapers, radio and television.
  3. 3
    A person who records and issues official reports of judicial or legislative proceedings.
  4. 4
    A case reporter; a bound volume of printed legal opinions from a particular jurisdiction.
  5. 5
    A gene attached by a researcher to a regulatory sequence of another gene of interest, typically used as an indication of whether a certain gene has been taken up by or expressed in the cell or organism population.

Etymology

From Middle English reportour, from Old French reporteur; equivalent to report + -er.

This word in other languages

reportero(Español)reporter(Français)Reporter(Deutsch)jornalista(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: erporter,reoprter,reporetr,reporrter,reporterr,reportre,reportter,repotrer,repporter,reproter,rpeorter,rreporter

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of reporter - 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.

erporter2reoprter2reporetr2reporrter1reporterr1reportre2reportter1repotrer2
Edit distance from "reporter"

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 "reporter"?
"reporter" is spelled R-E-P-O-R-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹɪˈpɔː.tə/.
What does "reporter" mean?
As a noun, "reporter" means: Someone or something that reports.
What words are commonly confused with "reporter"?
"reporter" is commonly confused with "reports", "resorted", "retorted". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "reporter"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "reporter" is /ɹɪˈpɔː.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 "reporter"?
From Middle English reportour, from Old French reporteur; equivalent to report + -er. 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 “reporter”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is R-E-P-O-R-T-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɹɪˈpɔː.tə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “reports” - see the side-by-side comparison. reporter vs reports
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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