temper

/ˈtɛmpə/

//ˈtɛmpə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“temper” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,551. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,551
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A general tendency or orientation towards a certain type of mood, a volatile state; a habitual way of thinking, behaving or reacting.

Corpus desk

Index EN-temper · temper · English

temper · rank #9,551 · 9 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,551
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH taxation

Nearest frequency peer: taxation (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “temper”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “temper” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

temper vs tempo
67% similar
temper vs timer
67% similar
temper vs tempt
67% similar

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

Key facts for temper
PropertyValue
Headwordtemper
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtɛmpə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#9,551
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “temper” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). temper lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around temper (IPA /ˈtɛmpə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,551 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 12 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for temper, with forms such as "etmper", "temepr", and "temmper". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "tempo", "timer", "tempt", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English temperen, tempren, from Old English ġetemprian, temprian, borrowed from Latin temperō (“I divide or proportion duly, I moderate, I regulate; intransitive senses I am moderate, I am temperate”), from tempus (“time, fit season”). Compare a… The correct English form is temper, spelled T-E-M-P-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A general tendency or orientation towards a certain type of mood, a volatile state; a habitual way of thinking, behaving or reacting.
  2. 2
    State of mind; mood.
  3. 3
    A tendency to become angry.
  4. 4
    Anger; a fit of anger.
  5. 5
    Calmness of mind; moderation; equanimity; composure.
  6. 6
    Constitution of body; the mixture or relative proportion of the four humours: blood, choler, phlegm, and melancholy.
  7. 7
    Middle state or course; mean; medium.
  8. 8
    The state of any compound substance which results from the mixture of various ingredients; due mixture of different qualities.
  9. 9
    The heat treatment to which a metal or other material has been subjected; a material that has undergone a particular heat treatment.
  10. 10
    The state of a metal or other substance, especially as to its hardness, produced by some process of heating or cooling.
  11. 11
    Milk of lime, or other substance, employed in the process formerly used to clarify sugar.
  12. 12
    A non-plastic material, such as sand, added to clay to prevent shrinkage and cracking during drying or firing; tempering.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. to have a good, bad, or calm temper
  2. A noble temper dost thou show in this;

Etymology

From Middle English temperen, tempren, from Old English ġetemprian, temprian, borrowed from Latin temperō (“I divide or proportion duly, I moderate, I regulate; intransitive senses I am moderate, I am temperate”), from tempus (“time, fit season”). Compare also French tempérer. Doublet of tamper. See temporal.

Synonyms

dispositiontemperamentrage

This word in other languages

temperamento(Español)caractère(Français)Gereiztheit(Deutsch)temperamento(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • etmper
  • temepr
  • temmper
  • temperr
  • tempper
  • tempre
  • tepmer
  • tmeper
  • ttemper

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

etmper2temepr2temmper1temperr1tempper1tempre2tepmer2tmeper2
Edit distance from "temper"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "temper"?
"temper" is spelled T-E-M-P-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɛmpə/.
What does "temper" mean?
As a noun, "temper" means: A general tendency or orientation towards a certain type of mood, a volatile state; a habitual way of thinking, behaving or reacting.
What words are commonly confused with "temper"?
"temper" is commonly confused with "tempo", "timer", "tempt". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "temper"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "temper" is /ˈtɛmpə/. 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 "temper"?
From Middle English temperen, tempren, from Old English ġetemprian, temprian, borrowed from Latin temperō (“I divide or proportion duly, I moderate, I regulate; intransitive senses I am moderate, I am temperate”), from tempus (“time, fit season”).... 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 "temper", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

suburb#9,547arrows#9,564rotten#9,531Boeing#9,572

Similar misspelling depth

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

snapped9 variantsbanning9 variantsroommate9 variantsBurton9 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "temper". Here's where to go from here.

  • "temper" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "tempo". View pair
  • 9 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #9,551 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "T" letter cohort. T–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list