tailgate

/ˈteɪlˌɡeɪt/

//ˈteɪlˌɡeɪt// noun

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

"tailgate" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“tailgate” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #28,398. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#28,398
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
11
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A hinged board or hatch at the rear of a vehicle that can be lowered for loading and unloading.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tailgate · tailgate · English

tailgate · rank #28,398 · 11 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #28,398
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH synaptic

Nearest frequency peer: synaptic (-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 “tailgate”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “tailgate” 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
Key facts for tailgate
PropertyValue
Headwordtailgate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈteɪlˌɡeɪt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#28,398
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “tailgate”

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).tailgatelands 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 “synaptic” (#28,397), “tenuous” (#28,399), “Thelma” (#28,400). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “tailgate” is #28,398. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around tailgate (IPA /ˈteɪlˌɡeɪt/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #28,398 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for tailgate, with forms such as "atilgate", "taiglate", and "tailagte". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From tail + gate. Compare liftgate. The correct English form is tailgate, spelled T-A-I-L-G-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A hinged board or hatch at the rear of a vehicle that can be lowered for loading and unloading.
  2. 2
    The hinged rear door of a hatchback.
  3. 3
    The downstream gate in the lock on a canal or river, or in an irrigation system.
  4. 4
    Ellipsis of tailgate party.
  5. 5
    A tunnel for drawing spent air away from the working face of a mine.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Drop the tailgate, please, and I'll load these pallets.
  2. When they first attached tailgates to cars, we were hooked. By the 1970s, wagons with names like Vista Cruiser and Town & Country sported tailgates as big as dining tables.

Etymology

From tail + gate. Compare liftgate.

This word in other languages

hayon(Français)Heckklappe(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • atilgate
  • taiglate
  • tailagte
  • tailgaet
  • tailgatte
  • tailggate
  • tailgtae
  • taillgate
  • taligate
  • tialgate
  • ttailgate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of tailgate - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

atilgate2taiglate2tailagte2tailgaet2tailgatte1tailggate1tailgtae2taillgate1
Edit distance from "tailgate"

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 "tailgate"?
"tailgate" is spelled T-A-I-L-G-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈteɪlˌɡeɪt/.
What does "tailgate" mean?
As a noun, "tailgate" means: A hinged board or hatch at the rear of a vehicle that can be lowered for loading and unloading.
What are common misspellings of "tailgate"?
Common misspellings include "atilgate", "taiglate", "tailagte", "tailgaet", "tailgatte". The correct spelling is "tailgate".
How do you pronounce "tailgate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tailgate" is /ˈteɪlˌɡeɪt/. 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 "tailgate"?
From tail + gate. Compare liftgate. 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 "tailgate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

synaptic#28,397subclass#28,390unhinged#28,412sneezing#28,373

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Winfrey11 variantsshifter11 variantssandbox11 variantsangling11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list