sweater

/ˈswɛtə/

//ˈswɛtə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“sweater” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,967. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,967
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A knitted jacket or jersey, usually of thick wool, worn by athletes before or after exercise.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sweater · sweater · English

sweater · rank #9,967 · 10 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,967
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH supermarket

Nearest frequency peer: supermarket (-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 “sweater”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “sweater” 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).

sweater vs sweaty
71% similar
sweater vs sweats
71% similar
sweater vs sweeper
71% similar

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

Key facts for sweater
PropertyValue
Headwordsweater
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈswɛtə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#9,967
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “sweater”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).sweaterlands 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 “supermarket” (#9,966), “tenant” (#9,968), “stab” (#9,965). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sweater” is #9,967. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around sweater (IPA /ˈswɛtə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,967 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 sweater, with forms such as "sewater", "ssweater", and "swaeter". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "sweaty", "sweats", "sweeper", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English swētere, equivalent to sweat + -er. The correct English form is sweater, spelled S-W-E-A-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A knitted jacket or jersey, usually of thick wool, worn by athletes before or after exercise.
  2. 2
    A similar garment worn for warmth.
  3. 3
    One who sweats (produces sweat).
  4. 4
    One who or that which causes to sweat.
  5. 5
    A diaphoretic remedy.
  6. 6
    An exploitative middleman who subcontracted piece work in the tailoring trade.
  7. 7
    One who sweats coins, i.e. removes small portions by shaking them.
  8. 8
    A London street ruffian in Queen Anne's time who prodded passers-by with his sword-point.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. We could slip away / Wouldn't that be better? / Me with nothing to say / And you in your autumn sweater
  2. The cardiologist who administered Alex's exercise stress test on August 21 observed during that test that Alex was a profuse sweater.

Etymology

From Middle English swētere, equivalent to sweat + -er.

This word in other languages

sudadera(Español)sweater(Français)Sweatshirt(Deutsch)malha(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • sewater
  • ssweater
  • swaeter
  • sweaetr
  • sweaterr
  • sweatre
  • sweatter
  • swetaer
  • swweater
  • wseater

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

sewater2ssweater1swaeter2sweaetr2sweaterr1sweatre2sweatter1swetaer2
Edit distance from "sweater"

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 "sweater"?
"sweater" is spelled S-W-E-A-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈswɛtə/.
What does "sweater" mean?
As a noun, "sweater" means: A knitted jacket or jersey, usually of thick wool, worn by athletes before or after exercise.
What words are commonly confused with "sweater"?
"sweater" is commonly confused with "sweaty", "sweats", "sweeper". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sweater"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sweater" is /ˈswɛtə/. 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 "sweater"?
From Middle English swētere, equivalent to sweat + -er. 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 "sweater", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Thomson#9,970specify#9,963tractor#9,973Simmons#9,957

Similar misspelling depth

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

shouted10 variantsvariant10 variantswherein10 variantsPython10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list