stagger

/ˈstæɡə/

//ˈstæɡə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“stagger” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #36,347. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#36,347
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An unsteady movement of the body in walking or standing as if one were about to fall; a reeling motion.

Corpus desk

Index EN-stagger · stagger · English

stagger · rank #36,347 · 9 variants · 13 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #36,347
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 13 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH SSN

Nearest frequency peer: SSN (-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 “stagger”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “stagger” 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).

stagger vs starter
71% similar
stagger vs stalker
71% similar
stagger vs swagger
86% similar

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

Key facts for stagger
PropertyValue
Headwordstagger
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈstæɡə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#36,347
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “stagger”

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).staggerlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “SSN” (#36,346), “spaniel” (#36,345), “Stalingrad” (#36,349). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “stagger” is #36,347. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around stagger (IPA /ˈstæɡə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #36,347 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for stagger, with forms such as "satgger", "sstagger", and "stagegr". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "starter", "stalker", "swagger", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English stakeren, from Old Norse stakra (“to push, stagger”). Cognate with dialectal Danish stagre. The correct English form is stagger, spelled S-T-A-G-G-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    An unsteady movement of the body in walking or standing as if one were about to fall; a reeling motion.
  2. 2
    A disease of horses and other animals, attended by reeling, unsteady gait or sudden falling.
  3. 3
    Bewilderment; perplexity.
  4. 4
    The spacing out of various actions over time.
  5. 5
    The difference in circumference between the left and right tires on a racing vehicle. It is used on oval tracks to make the car turn better in the corners.
  6. 6
    The horizontal positioning of a biplane, triplane, or multiplane's wings in relation to one another.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. 7 October 2012, Paolo Bandini in The Guardian, Denver Broncos 21 New England Patriots 31 - as it happened Put down the rosary beads folks, I believe hell may just have frozen over. Peyton Manning drops back, sees nothing open and runs for a first down. If you can call that running. More like the stagger of a wounded rhino. Did the job, though
  2. Afy slowly gathered in the sense of the words. She gasped twice, as if her breath had gone, and then, with a stagger and a shiver, fell heavily to the ground.

Etymology

From Middle English stakeren, from Old Norse stakra (“to push, stagger”). Cognate with dialectal Danish stagre.

This word in other languages

tambaleo(Español)vaciller(Français)Schwanken(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • satgger
  • sstagger
  • stagegr
  • stager
  • staggerr
  • staggre
  • stgager
  • sttagger
  • tsagger

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

satgger2sstagger1stagegr2stager1staggerr1staggre2stgager2sttagger1
Edit distance from "stagger"

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 "stagger"?
"stagger" is spelled S-T-A-G-G-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstæɡə/.
What does "stagger" mean?
As a noun, "stagger" means: An unsteady movement of the body in walking or standing as if one were about to fall; a reeling motion.
What words are commonly confused with "stagger"?
"stagger" is commonly confused with "starter", "stalker", "swagger". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "stagger"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "stagger" is /ˈstæɡə/. 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 "stagger"?
From Middle English stakeren, from Old Norse stakra (“to push, stagger”). Cognate with dialectal Danish stagre. 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 "stagger", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

spaniel#36,345stiffer#36,354subtext#36,356serrano#36,336

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

solver9 variantssteely9 variantssurety9 variantsSylvie9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list