spatula

/ˈspætjʊlə/

//ˈspætjʊlə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“spatula” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #34,696. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#34,696
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A kitchen utensil consisting of a flat surface attached to a long handle, used for turning, lifting, or stirring food.

Corpus desk

Index EN-spatula · spatula · English

spatula · rank #34,696 · 10 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #34,696
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH soi

Nearest frequency peer: soi (-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 “spatula”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “spatula” 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 spatula
PropertyValue
Headwordspatula
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈspætjʊlə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#34,696
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “spatula”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).spatulalands 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 “soi” (#34,694), “Sodom” (#34,692), “stepdad” (#34,701). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “spatula” is #34,696. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around spatula (IPA /ˈspætjʊlə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #34,696 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for spatula, with forms such as "psatula", "saptula", and "spatlua". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin spatula (“a flat piece”), the diminutive form of spatha (“broad or flat tool”), from Ancient Greek σπάθη (spáthē, “a broad wood or metal blade”). Doublet of spauld; compare spatha and spathe. The correct English form is spatula, spelled S-P-A-T-U-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A kitchen utensil consisting of a flat surface attached to a long handle, used for turning, lifting, or stirring food.
  2. 2
    A kitchen utensil consisting of a flexible surface attached to a long handle, used for scraping the sides of bowls.
  3. 3
    A palette knife.
  4. 4
    A thin hand tool, often made of nickel, for handling chemicals or other materials, when weighing, etc.
  5. 5
    A tongue depressor.
  6. 6
    A croupier's tool for turning up cards in a casino.
  7. 7
    A sclerotized, T-shaped plate in the prothorax of larvae of flies belonging to family Cecidomyiidae, the gall midges.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The croupier delicately faced her other two cards with the tip of his spatula. A four! She had lost!
  2. The third instars are similar to other members of the genus except for a three-pronged spatula (typically two-pronged) and five lateral papillae (typically four) and with a nonbristled first instar.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin spatula (“a flat piece”), the diminutive form of spatha (“broad or flat tool”), from Ancient Greek σπάθη (spáthē, “a broad wood or metal blade”). Doublet of spauld; compare spatha and spathe.

This word in other languages

espátula(Español)spatule(Français)Pfannenwender(Deutsch)espátula(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • psatula
  • saptula
  • spatlua
  • spattula
  • spatual
  • spatulla
  • spautla
  • sppatula
  • sptaula
  • sspatula

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

psatula2saptula2spatlua2spattula1spatual2spatulla1spautla2sppatula1
Edit distance from "spatula"

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 "spatula"?
"spatula" is spelled S-P-A-T-U-L-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈspætjʊlə/.
What does "spatula" mean?
As a noun, "spatula" means: A kitchen utensil consisting of a flat surface attached to a long handle, used for turning, lifting, or stirring food.
What are common misspellings of "spatula"?
Common misspellings include "psatula", "saptula", "spatlua", "spattula", "spatual". The correct spelling is "spatula".
How do you pronounce "spatula"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spatula" is /ˈspætjʊlə/. 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 "spatula"?
Borrowed from Latin spatula (“a flat piece”), the diminutive form of spatha (“broad or flat tool”), from Ancient Greek σπάθη (spáthē, “a broad wood or metal blade”). Doublet of spauld; compare spatha and spathe. 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 "spatula", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

stepdad#34,701tetanus#34,715Saitama#34,675thrifty#34,718

Similar misspelling depth

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

quicken10 variantspurview10 variantsprecede10 variantsZambian10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list