tailpipe

/ˈteɪlpaɪp/

//ˈteɪlpaɪp// noun

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

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

The verdict

“tailpipe” is uncommon English (frequency #68,681 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#68,681
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An exhaust pipe exhausting to the aft of the vehicle.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tailpipe · tailpipe · English

tailpipe · rank #68,681 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #68,681
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH Takeo

Nearest frequency peer: Takeo (+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 “tailpipe”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for tailpipe
PropertyValue
Headwordtailpipe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈteɪlpaɪp/
Letters8
Frequency rank#68,681
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “tailpipe” 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).tailpipefalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “Takeo” (#68,682), “Tachibana” (#68,679), “Szechuan” (#68,678). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “tailpipe” is #68,681. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

tailpipe is uncommon English at frequency #68,681 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈteɪlpaɪp/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for tailpipe in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From tail + pipe. The correct English form is tailpipe, spelled T-A-I-L-P-I-P-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An exhaust pipe exhausting to the aft of the vehicle.
  2. 2
    An exhaust pipe (on a vehicle) (in any configuration).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Holonym: exhaust system
  2. This car doesn't have a tailpipe because it has sidepipes instead.

Etymology

From tail + pipe.

This word in other languages

pot d'échappement(Français)

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 "tailpipe"?
"tailpipe" is spelled T-A-I-L-P-I-P-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈteɪlpaɪp/.
What does "tailpipe" mean?
As a noun, "tailpipe" means: An exhaust pipe exhausting to the aft of the vehicle.
How do you pronounce "tailpipe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tailpipe" is /ˈteɪlpaɪp/. 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 "tailpipe"?
From tail + pipe. 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 "tailpipe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Szechuan#68,678Tarleton#68,687terrapin#68,690summoner#68,671

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list