son of a bitch
"son-of-a-bitch" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“son of a bitch” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 14
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An objectionable, despicable person.
Corpus desk
Index EN-son-of-a-bitch · son of a bitch · English
son of a bitch · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 14 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "S" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | son of a bitch |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 14 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “son of a bitch” in English
Rare enough to double-check
son of a bitch is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for son of a bitch, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: Alteration of an earlier phrase represented by Middle English biche-sone (“son of a bitch”, literally “bitch's son”), calqued from Old Norse bikkju-sonr (“son of a bitch”). The correct English form is son of a bitch, spelled S-O-N- -O-F- -A- -B-I-T-C-H.
Definition
- 1An objectionable, despicable person.
- 2Any objectionable thing.
- 3An impressive, daring, or admirable man.
- 4A suffering person deemed deserving of compassion.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how son of a bitch appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
My mother never saw the irony in calling me a son of a bitch.
Those sons of bitches don’t stand a chance.
Etymology
Alteration of an earlier phrase represented by Middle English biche-sone (“son of a bitch”, literally “bitch's son”), calqued from Old Norse bikkju-sonr (“son of a bitch”).
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.