Tartarus
/ˈtɑː(r)tərəs/
"tartarus" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Tartarus” is an uncommon English word, ranked #57,759 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #57,759
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A dark and gloomy part of the realm of Hades, reserved for the damned and the wicked, such as the Titans; an equivalent of hell in Greek and Roman mythology.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Tartarus |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ˈtɑː(r)tərəs/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #57,759 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Tartarus” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Tartarus is 8 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɑː(r)tərəs/. Corpus data places it at rank #57,759 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Tartarus, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin Tartarus, from Ancient Greek Τάρταρος (Tártaros). The correct English form is Tartarus, spelled T-A-R-T-A-R-U-S.
Definition
- 1A dark and gloomy part of the realm of Hades, reserved for the damned and the wicked, such as the Titans; an equivalent of hell in Greek and Roman mythology.
- 2Any hellish place; a dark gloomy chasm or pit.
Etymology
From Latin Tartarus, from Ancient Greek Τάρταρος (Tártaros).
This word in other languages
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 “Tartarus”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-A-R-T-A-R-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtɑː(r)tərəs/ (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
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.