shearer

/ˈʃɪəɹə/

//ˈʃɪəɹə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“shearer” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #30,220. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#30,220
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person employed to remove the wool from animals, such as sheep. using shears.

Corpus desk

Index EN-shearer · shearer · English

shearer · rank #30,220 · 10 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #30,220
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH serviceable

Nearest frequency peer: serviceable (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “shearer”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “shearer” 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).

shearer vs sheer
71% similar
shearer vs shears
71% similar
shearer vs speaker
71% similar

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

Key facts for shearer
PropertyValue
Headwordshearer
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈʃɪəɹə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#30,220
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “shearer”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “serviceable” (#30,218), “Seagulls” (#30,217), “shredder” (#30,223). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “shearer” is #30,220. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around shearer (IPA /ˈʃɪəɹə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #30,220 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for shearer, with forms such as "hsearer", "seharer", and "shaerer". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "sheer", "shears", "speaker", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From shear + -er. The correct English form is shearer, spelled S-H-E-A-R-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person employed to remove the wool from animals, such as sheep. using shears.
  2. 2
    A person employed in a roller mill to shear off the uneven side of the hot metal plate.
  3. 3
    A piece of industrial equipment used to grind up long shafts of coal in underground mines.

Etymology

From shear + -er.

This word in other languages

tondeur(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hsearer
  • seharer
  • shaerer
  • sheaerr
  • shearerr
  • shearre
  • shearrer
  • sheraer
  • shhearer
  • sshearer

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of shearer - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

hsearer2seharer2shaerer2sheaerr2shearerr1shearre2shearrer1sheraer2
Edit distance from "shearer"

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 "shearer"?
"shearer" is spelled S-H-E-A-R-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃɪəɹə/.
What does "shearer" mean?
As a noun, "shearer" means: A person employed to remove the wool from animals, such as sheep. using shears.
What words are commonly confused with "shearer"?
"shearer" is commonly confused with "sheer", "shears", "speaker". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "shearer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shearer" is /ˈʃɪəɹə/. 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 "shearer"?
From shear + -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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "shearer", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Siamese#30,225sapiens#30,212simplex#30,229Rutland#30,208

Similar misspelling depth

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

Seagulls10 variantspooling10 variantstotalled10 variantsnatures10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list