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tabard

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

6 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "tabard", 6-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "tabard" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "tabard" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

tabard is aEnglishnoun. It means: A silk banner attached to a bugle or trumpet. Pronounced /ˈtæbɑː(ɹ)d/.

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Key facts for tabard
PropertyValue
Headwordtabard
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtæbɑː(ɹ)d/
Letters6
Frequency rank#86,825
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of tabard in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for tabard is 6 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtæbɑː(ɹ)d/. Corpus data places it at rank #86,825 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

No frequent misspelling variants are recorded for tabard in our index, suggesting the orthography either follows predictable English patterns or the word is uncommon enough that typo corpora lack signal.It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French tabart (“simple sleeveless overtunic; heavy overmantel”), of unknown origin. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is tabard, spelled T-A-B-A-R-D, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A silk banner attached to a bugle or trumpet.
  2. 2
    A sleeveless jerkin or loose overgarment.
  3. 3
    A sleeveless garment made of coarse cloth formerly worn outdoors by the common people.
  4. 4
    A cape or tunic worn by a knight, emblazoned with the coat of arms of his king or queen on the front.
  5. 5
    A similar garment officially worn by a herald and emblazoned with his sovereign's coat of arms.

Etymology

From Old French tabart (“simple sleeveless overtunic; heavy overmantel”), of unknown origin.

This word in other languages

Frequency rank: #86,825 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "tabard"?
"tabard" is spelled T-A-B-A-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtæbɑː(ɹ)d/.
What does "tabard" mean?
As a noun, "tabard" means: A silk banner attached to a bugle or trumpet.
How do you pronounce "tabard"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tabard" is /ˈtæbɑː(ɹ)d/. 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 "tabard"?
From Old French tabart (“simple sleeveless overtunic; heavy overmantel”), of unknown origin. 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.

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.