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” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #9,551 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#9,551
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A general tendency or orientation towards a certain type of mood, a volatile state; a habitual way of thinking, behaving or reacting.

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.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for temper is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɛmpə/. Corpus data places it at rank #9,551 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

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.

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.

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.

Using “temper”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is T-E-M-P-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈtɛmpə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “tempo” - see the side-by-side comparison. temper vs tempo
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list