Tacoma

/təˈkoʊmə/

//təˈkoʊmə// name

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

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

The verdict

“Tacoma” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #20,244 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.

#20,244
frequency rank, English
6
letters
8
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A city, the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Tacoma vs tama
50% similar
Tacoma vs toma
50% similar
Tacoma vs taco
50% similar

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

Key facts for Tacoma
PropertyValue
HeadwordTacoma
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/təˈkoʊmə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#20,244
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Tacoma” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for Tacoma is 6 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /təˈkoʊmə/. Corpus data places it at rank #20,244 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.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for Tacoma, with forms such as "atcoma", "taccoma", and "tacmoa". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "tama", "toma", "taco", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier Takhoma (“the area south of Seattle”), borrowed from Lushootseed təˈkhoʊʔməʔ, təlˈkhoʊʔbəʔ, təloʊʔl (the area surrounding Mount Rainier), from təˡqʷuʔbəʔ (“mother of waters”) in a direct reference to Mount Rainier. The correct English form is Tacoma, spelled T-A-C-O-M-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A city, the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States.
  2. 2
    An unincorporated community in Belmont County, Ohio, United States.
  3. 3
    An unincorporated community and coal town in Wise County, Virginia, United States.
  4. 4
    Former name of Mount Rainier.
  5. 5
    A suburb in the Central Coast region, New South Wales, Australia.

Etymology

From earlier Takhoma (“the area south of Seattle”), borrowed from Lushootseed təˈkhoʊʔməʔ, təlˈkhoʊʔbəʔ, təloʊʔl (the area surrounding Mount Rainier), from təˡqʷuʔbəʔ (“mother of waters”) in a direct reference to Mount Rainier.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: atcoma,taccoma,tacmoa,tacoam,tacomma,taocma,tcaoma,ttacoma

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Tacoma - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

atcoma2taccoma1tacmoa2tacoam2tacomma1taocma2tcaoma2ttacoma1
Edit distance from "Tacoma"

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 "Tacoma"?
"Tacoma" is spelled T-A-C-O-M-A. The IPA pronunciation is /təˈkoʊmə/.
What does "Tacoma" mean?
As a proper noun, "Tacoma" means: A city, the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States.
What words are commonly confused with "Tacoma"?
"Tacoma" is commonly confused with "tama", "toma", "taco". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Tacoma"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Tacoma" is /təˈkoʊmə/. 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 "Tacoma"?
From earlier Takhoma (“the area south of Seattle”), borrowed from Lushootseed təˈkhoʊʔməʔ, təlˈkhoʊʔbəʔ, təloʊʔl (the area surrounding Mount Rainier), from təˡqʷuʔbəʔ (“mother of waters”) in a direct reference to Mount Rainier. 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.

Using “Tacoma”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is T-A-C-O-M-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /təˈkoʊmə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “tama” - see the side-by-side comparison. Tacoma vs tama
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list