suntan

/ˈsʌnˌtæn/

//ˈsʌnˌtæn// noun

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

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

The verdict

“suntan” is uncommon English (frequency #68,673 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#68,673
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A darkening of the skin resulting from exposure to sunlight or similar light sources.

Corpus desk

Index EN-suntan · suntan · English

suntan · rank #68,673 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #68,673
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH superyacht

Nearest frequency peer: superyacht (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “suntan”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “suntan” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for suntan
PropertyValue
Headwordsuntan
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsʌnˌtæn/
Letters6
Frequency rank#68,673
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “suntan” in English

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).suntanfalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “superyacht” (#68,674), “summoner” (#68,671), “surreptitious” (#68,675). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “suntan” is #68,673. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

suntan is uncommon English at frequency #68,673 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsʌnˌtæn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A darkening of the skin resulting from exposure to sunlight or similar light sources.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for suntan, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sun + tan. The correct English form is suntan, spelled S-U-N-T-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A darkening of the skin resulting from exposure to sunlight or similar light sources.

Etymology

From sun + tan.

This word in other languages

bronceado(Español)bronzage(Français)Bräune(Deutsch)bronze(Português)

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 "suntan"?
"suntan" is spelled S-U-N-T-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsʌnˌtæn/.
What does "suntan" mean?
As a noun, "suntan" means: A darkening of the skin resulting from exposure to sunlight or similar light sources.
How do you pronounce "suntan"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "suntan" is /ˈsʌnˌtæn/. 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 "suntan"?
From sun + tan. 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 "suntan", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Sugden#68,670swirly#68,676Soraya#68,654socked#68,650

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list