tank top

noun

"tank-top" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“tank top” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An item of casual clothing: a top with no sleeves.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tank-top · tank top · English

tank top · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "T" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for tank top
PropertyValue
Headwordtank top
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “tank top” in English

tank topfalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

tank top is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

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

Etymologically, the entry records: The upper part of a tank suit worn by female swimmers in modester times when swimming pools were called swimming tanks. The correct English form is tank top, spelled T-A-N-K- -T-O-P.

Definition

  1. 1
    An item of casual clothing: a top with no sleeves.
  2. 2
    The top of a ship's bilge tank, usually the lowest horizontal surface on board.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. The service makes available, during limited weekend hours, a handful of the company's items – cargo shorts, tank tops, and the like – to the Hamptons house guest who discovers that he can't make it to Monday without purchasing one of those weird madras patchwork blazers.

Etymology

The upper part of a tank suit worn by female swimmers in modester times when swimming pools were called swimming tanks.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "tank top"?
"tank top" is spelled T-A-N-K- -T-O-P.
What does "tank top" mean?
As a noun, "tank top" means: An item of casual clothing: a top with no sleeves.
What is the origin of the word "tank top"?
The upper part of a tank suit worn by female swimmers in modester times when swimming pools were called swimming tanks. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list