stylus

/ˈstaɪ.ləs/

//ˈstaɪ.ləs// noun

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

"stylus" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“stylus” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #28,389. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#28,389
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An ancient writing implement consisting of a small rod with a pointed end for scratching letters on clay, wax-covered tablets or other surfaces, and a blunt end for obliterating them.

Corpus desk

Index EN-stylus · stylus · English

stylus · rank #28,389 · 10 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #28,389
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Streep

Nearest frequency peer: Streep (-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 “stylus”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “stylus” 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).

stylus vs style
67% similar
stylus vs status
67% similar
stylus vs styled
67% similar

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

Key facts for stylus
PropertyValue
Headwordstylus
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈstaɪ.ləs/
Letters6
Frequency rank#28,389
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “stylus”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).styluslands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Streep” (#28,388), “subclass” (#28,390), “SSE” (#28,386). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “stylus” is #28,389. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around stylus (IPA /ˈstaɪ.ləs/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #28,389 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for stylus, with forms such as "sstylus", "stlyus", and "sttylus". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "style", "status", "styled", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin stylus (“a stake or pale”). Probably not directly related to Ancient Greek στῦλος (stûlos, “a pillar”). Doublet of style. The correct English form is stylus, spelled S-T-Y-L-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    An ancient writing implement consisting of a small rod with a pointed end for scratching letters on clay, wax-covered tablets or other surfaces, and a blunt end for obliterating them.
  2. 2
    An ancient writing implement consisting of a small rod with a pointed end for scratching letters on clay, wax-covered tablets or other surfaces, and a blunt end for obliterating them.
  3. 3
    An ancient writing implement consisting of a small rod with a pointed end for scratching letters on clay, wax-covered tablets or other surfaces, and a blunt end for obliterating them.
  4. 4
    A hard-pointed pen-shaped instrument for marking on stencils used in a mimeograph machine.
  5. 5
    A hard point, typically of diamond or sapphire, following a groove in a phonograph and transmitting the recorded sound for reproduction.
  6. 6
    A hard point, typically of diamond or sapphire, following a groove in a phonograph and transmitting the recorded sound for reproduction.
  7. 7
    A tool for making small dots on a piece of heavy paper, used to produce Braille writing for the blind by hand.
  8. 8
    Synonym of style.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. [T]he pleasure of writing on wax with a stylus is exemplified by the fine, flowing hand of a Roman scribe who made out the birth certificate of Herennia Gemella, born March 128 AD.
  2. But that tactic may have older roots than we thought; archaeologists have discovered an iron stylus in London, complete with an inscribed joke, that dates back nearly 2,000 years. Of 200 styluses found at a site under Bloomberg’s new European headquarters, only one – dating back to around 70 A.D. – had a message inscribed onto it.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin stylus (“a stake or pale”). Probably not directly related to Ancient Greek στῦλος (stûlos, “a pillar”). Doublet of style.

This word in other languages

estilo(Español)stylet(Français)Eingabestift(Deutsch)estilo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • sstylus
  • stlyus
  • sttylus
  • styllus
  • stylsu
  • styluss
  • styuls
  • styylus
  • sytlus
  • tsylus

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of stylus - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

sstylus1stlyus2sttylus1styllus1stylsu2styluss1styuls2styylus1
Edit distance from "stylus"

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 "stylus"?
"stylus" is spelled S-T-Y-L-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstaɪ.ləs/.
What does "stylus" mean?
As a noun, "stylus" means: An ancient writing implement consisting of a small rod with a pointed end for scratching letters on clay, wax-covered tablets or other surfaces, and a blunt end for obliterating them.
What words are commonly confused with "stylus"?
"stylus" is commonly confused with "style", "status", "styled". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "stylus"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "stylus" is /ˈstaɪ.ləs/. 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 "stylus"?
Borrowed from Latin stylus (“a stake or pale”). Probably not directly related to Ancient Greek στῦλος (stûlos, “a pillar”). Doublet of style. 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 "stylus", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Streep#28,388spiced#28,384suture#28,395Thelma#28,400

Similar misspelling depth

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

Sichuan10 variantsshrugs10 variantsVersace10 variantsWheaton10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list