# stylus

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈstaɪ.ləs/ · frequency rank #28,389

## Definitions
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. 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. 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. A hard-pointed pen-shaped instrument for marking on stencils used in a mimeograph machine.
5. A hard point, typically of diamond or sapphire, following a groove in a phonograph and transmitting the recorded sound for reproduction.
6. A hard point, typically of diamond or sapphire, following a groove in a phonograph and transmitting the recorded sound for reproduction.
7. A tool for making small dots on a piece of heavy paper, used to produce Braille writing for the blind by hand.
8. Synonym of style.

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

## Easily confused with
- **style** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/style-vs-stylus)
- **status** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/status-vs-stylus)
- **styled** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/styled-vs-stylus)
- **Stalls** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stalls-vs-stylus)
- **Straus** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/straus-vs-stylus)
- **stylish** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stylish-vs-stylus)
- **stylist** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stylist-vs-stylus)

## Common misspellings (10)
`sstylus`, `stlyus`, `sttylus`, `styllus`, `stylsu`, `styluss`, `styuls`, `styylus`, `sytlus`, `tsylus`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/stylus