shrapnel

/ˈʃɹæpnəl/

//ˈʃɹæpnəl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“shrapnel” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #23,994. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#23,994
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
13
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An anti-personnel artillery shell used in World War I which carries a large number of individual bullets or balls close to the target and then ejects them to allow them to continue along the shell'...

Corpus desk

Index EN-shrapnel · shrapnel · English

shrapnel · rank #23,994 · 13 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #23,994
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH showering

Nearest frequency peer: showering (-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 “shrapnel”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “shrapnel” 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
Key facts for shrapnel
PropertyValue
Headwordshrapnel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈʃɹæpnəl/
Letters8
Frequency rank#23,994
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “shrapnel”

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).shrapnellands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “showering” (#23,993), “shutout” (#23,995), “sickle” (#23,996). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “shrapnel” is #23,994. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around shrapnel (IPA /ˈʃɹæpnəl/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #23,994 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for shrapnel, with forms such as "hsrapnel", "sharpnel", and "shhrapnel". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Shrapnel. Named after British army officer Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842) who invented an anti-personnel shell that transported a large number of bullets to the target before releasing them, at a far greater distance than rifles could fire the bullets indi… The correct English form is shrapnel, spelled S-H-R-A-P-N-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    An anti-personnel artillery shell used in World War I which carries a large number of individual bullets or balls close to the target and then ejects them to allow them to continue along the shell's trajectory and strike the target individually.
  2. 2
    The bullets or balls from the aforementioned type of artillery shell.
  3. 3
    Any shot, fragments, or debris thrown out by an exploding shell, bomb, or landmine.
  4. 4
    Debris.
  5. 5
    Loose change.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The dog ate my sandwich, and there was shrapnel all over the place from him tearing open the bag.
  2. I was waiting in the queue, looking at the board / Wondering whether to have a burger or chips / Or what the shrapnel in my back pocket could afford

Etymology

From Shrapnel. Named after British army officer Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842) who invented an anti-personnel shell that transported a large number of bullets to the target before releasing them, at a far greater distance than rifles could fire the bullets individually. The surname is likely a metathesized form of Charbonnel, a diminutive of Old French charbon (“charcoal”) in reference to hair color, complexion, or the like.

This word in other languages

metralla(Español)shrapnel(Français)Schrapnell(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hsrapnel
  • sharpnel
  • shhrapnel
  • shranpel
  • shrapenl
  • shrapnell
  • shrapnle
  • shrapnnel
  • shrappnel
  • shrpanel
  • shrrapnel
  • srhapnel
  • sshrapnel

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of shrapnel - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

hsrapnel2sharpnel2shhrapnel1shranpel2shrapenl2shrapnell1shrapnle2shrapnnel1
Edit distance from "shrapnel"

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 "shrapnel"?
"shrapnel" is spelled S-H-R-A-P-N-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃɹæpnəl/.
What does "shrapnel" mean?
As a noun, "shrapnel" means: An anti-personnel artillery shell used in World War I which carries a large number of individual bullets or balls close to the target and then ejects them to allow them to continue along the shell'...
What are common misspellings of "shrapnel"?
Common misspellings include "hsrapnel", "sharpnel", "shhrapnel", "shranpel", "shrapenl". The correct spelling is "shrapnel".
How do you pronounce "shrapnel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shrapnel" is /ˈʃɹæpnəl/. 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 "shrapnel"?
From Shrapnel. Named after British army officer Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842) who invented an anti-personnel shell that transported a large number of bullets to the target before releasing them, at a far greater distance than rifles could fire the bu... 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 "shrapnel", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Schuster#23,985stairway#24,006textured#24,022thwarted#24,026

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

shellfish13 variantssaxophone13 variantsSamaritan13 variantsquadruple13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list