tantalus
/ˈtæntələs/
"tantalus" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“tantalus” is uncommon English (frequency #85,846 among 27,828 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #85,846
- frequency rank, English
- 27,828
- “T” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A stork of the genus Mycteria (formerly Tantalus), especially the American wood stork, Mycteria americana.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | tantalus |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈtæntələs/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #85,846 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “tantalus” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
tantalus is uncommon English at frequency #85,846 among 27,828 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtæntələs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
tantalus has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin Tantalus, from Ancient Greek Τάνταλος (Tántalos, “Tantalus”), a Phrygian king in Greek mythology who was condemned to stand in a pool of water which receded every time he tried to drink, and with overhanging branches of fruit which pulled back wh… The correct English form is tantalus, spelled T-A-N-T-A-L-U-S.
Definition
- 1A stork of the genus Mycteria (formerly Tantalus), especially the American wood stork, Mycteria americana.
- 2A stand in which to lock up drink decanters while keeping them visible.
- 3Something of an evasive or retreating nature, something consistently out of reach; a tantalising thing.
Etymology
From Latin Tantalus, from Ancient Greek Τάνταλος (Tántalos, “Tantalus”), a Phrygian king in Greek mythology who was condemned to stand in a pool of water which receded every time he tried to drink, and with overhanging branches of fruit which pulled back whenever he tried to eat. Doublet of Tantalus.
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
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Using “tantalus”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-A-N-T-A-L-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtæntələs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.