tampon

[ˈtʰæmpɒn]

/[ˈtʰæmpɒn]/ noun

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

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

The verdict

“tampon” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #33,447. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#33,447
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A plug of cotton or other absorbent material inserted into a body cavity or wound to absorb fluid, especially one inserted in the vagina during menstruation.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tampon · tampon · English

tampon · rank #33,447 · 9 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #33,447
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tamper

Nearest frequency peer: tamper (-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 “tampon”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “tampon” 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).

tampon vs tempo
67% similar
tampon vs Timon
50% similar
tampon vs Tampa
50% similar

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

Key facts for tampon
PropertyValue
Headwordtampon
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈtʰæmpɒn]
Letters6
Frequency rank#33,447
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “tampon”

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).tamponlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “tamper” (#33,446), “Telangana” (#33,448), “telephony” (#33,449). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “tampon” is #33,447. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around tampon (IPA [ˈtʰæmpɒn]), anoun. Corpus frequency is #33,447 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for tampon, with forms such as "atmpon", "tammpon", and "tamopn". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "tempo", "Timon", "Tampa", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in 1848. Borrowed from French tampon, from Middle French tampon, a nasalised variant of tapon, a diminutive or augmented form of Old French tape (“plug, bung, tap”), from Frankish *tappō (“stopper, plug”), from Proto-Germanic *tappô (“plug, t… The correct English form is tampon, spelled T-A-M-P-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A plug of cotton or other absorbent material inserted into a body cavity or wound to absorb fluid, especially one inserted in the vagina during menstruation.
  2. 2
    A double-headed drumstick primarily for the bass drum.
  3. 3
    An inking pad used in lithographic printing.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The only apparent difference between Playtex deodorant and nondeodorant tampons was the deodorant, yet the deodorant tampons did not stimulate the production of TSST-1.
  2. I examined a tampon, from the outside only without removing the wrapper because I did not want to waste one, and considered aloud the consequences of pushing the offensively shaped object into my vagina.

Etymology

First attested in 1848. Borrowed from French tampon, from Middle French tampon, a nasalised variant of tapon, a diminutive or augmented form of Old French tape (“plug, bung, tap”), from Frankish *tappō (“stopper, plug”), from Proto-Germanic *tappô (“plug, tap”). Cognate with Old High German zapfo (“stopper”), Old English tæppa (“stopper”). Doublet of tampion. More at tap.

Synonyms

vampire's teabag

This word in other languages

tampon(Français)Tampon(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • atmpon
  • tammpon
  • tamopn
  • tampno
  • tamponn
  • tamppon
  • tapmon
  • tmapon
  • ttampon

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

atmpon2tammpon1tamopn2tampno2tamponn1tamppon1tapmon2tmapon2
Edit distance from "tampon"

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 "tampon"?
"tampon" is spelled T-A-M-P-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈtʰæmpɒn].
What does "tampon" mean?
As a noun, "tampon" means: A plug of cotton or other absorbent material inserted into a body cavity or wound to absorb fluid, especially one inserted in the vagina during menstruation.
What words are commonly confused with "tampon"?
"tampon" is commonly confused with "tempo", "Timon", "Tampa". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "tampon"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tampon" is [ˈtʰæmpɒn]. 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 "tampon"?
First attested in 1848. Borrowed from French tampon, from Middle French tampon, a nasalised variant of tapon, a diminutive or augmented form of Old French tape (“plug, bung, tap”), from Frankish *tappō (“stopper, plug”), from Proto-Germanic *tappô... 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 "tampon", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

tamper#33,446synced#33,444toffee#33,456Tomlin#33,458

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

shogun9 variantssawmill9 variantsrudely9 variantsrework9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list