Stafford

/ˈstæfə(ɹ)d/

//ˈstæfə(ɹ)d// name

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

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

The verdict

“Stafford” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,813. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,813
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A placename:

Corpus desk

Index EN-stafford · Stafford · English

Stafford · rank #13,813 · 11 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,813
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH spree

Nearest frequency peer: spree (-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 “Stafford”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “Stafford” 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).

Stafford vs Stanford
88% similar
Stafford vs Stamford
88% similar
Stafford vs Stratford
78% similar

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

Key facts for Stafford
PropertyValue
HeadwordStafford
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈstæfə(ɹ)d/
Letters8
Frequency rank#13,813
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “Stafford”

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).Staffordlands 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 “spree” (#13,812), “sparkling” (#13,811), “Stevenson” (#13,815). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “Stafford” is #13,813. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around Stafford (IPA /ˈstæfə(ɹ)d/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #13,813 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 14 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for Stafford, with forms such as "satfford", "sstafford", and "staffodr". 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. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "Stanford", "Stamford", "Stratford", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old English stæþ (“landing place”) + ford. The correct English form is Stafford, spelled S-T-A-F-F-O-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A placename:
  2. 2
    A placename:
  3. 3
    A placename:
  4. 4
    A placename:
  5. 5
    A placename:
  6. 6
    A placename:
  7. 7
    A placename:
  8. 8
    A placename:
  9. 9
    A placename:
  10. 10
    A placename:
  11. 11
    A placename:
  12. 12
    A placename:
  13. 13
    An English habitational surname from the place name.
  14. 14
    A male given name transferred from the surname.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. In September 2023, Amelia Stafford was 15 and beginning her sophomore year at Terra Linda High School in eastern Marin County, Calif.

Etymology

From Old English stæþ (“landing place”) + ford.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • satfford
  • sstafford
  • staffodr
  • staffordd
  • stafforrd
  • staffrod
  • stafofrd
  • staford
  • stfaford
  • sttafford
  • tsafford

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

satfford2sstafford1staffodr2staffordd1stafforrd1staffrod2stafofrd2staford1
Edit distance from "Stafford"

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 "Stafford"?
"Stafford" is spelled S-T-A-F-F-O-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstæfə(ɹ)d/.
What does "Stafford" mean?
As a proper noun, "Stafford" means: A placename:
What words are commonly confused with "Stafford"?
"Stafford" is commonly confused with "Stanford", "Stamford", "Stratford". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Stafford"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Stafford" is /ˈstæfə(ɹ)d/. 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 "Stafford"?
From Old English stæþ (“landing place”) + ford. 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 "Stafford", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

tailored#13,821reversal#13,799recycled#13,794pursuant#13,793

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

subsidy11 variantstracing11 variantsveronica11 variantsWembley11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list