sotto voce
/ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃeɪ/
"sotto-voce" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“sotto voce” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as an adjective - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In soft tones; quiet.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | sotto voce |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃeɪ/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “sotto voce” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for sotto voce is 10 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃeɪ/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No misspelling variants are generated for sotto voce in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Italian sottovoce (literally “under [the] voice”). The correct English form is sotto voce, spelled S-O-T-T-O- -V-O-C-E.
Definition
- 1In soft tones; quiet.
- 2Soft, instruments or voice.
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian sottovoce (literally “under [the] voice”).
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "sotto voce"?
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Using “sotto voce”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-O-T-T-O- -V-O-C-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌsɒtəʊ ˈvəʊtʃeɪ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.