tiger
/ˈtaɪɡə/
"tiger" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“tiger” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #4,340 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #4,340
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 6
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Panthera tigris, a large predatory mammal of the cat family, indigenous to Asia.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | tiger |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈtaɪɡə/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #4,340 |
| Misspellings tracked | 6 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “tiger” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for tiger is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtaɪɡə/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,340 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 16 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for tiger, with forms such as "itger", "tgier", and "tiegr". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "time", "tire", "tile", 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 tygre, in part from Old English tigras (pl.), in part from Anglo-Norman tigre, both from Latin tigris, from Ancient Greek τίγρις (tígris), from Iranian (compare Avestan 𐬙𐬌𐬔𐬭𐬌 (tigri, “arrow”), 𐬙𐬌𐬖𐬭𐬀 (tiγra, “pointed”)). Ultimat… The correct English form is tiger, spelled T-I-G-E-R.
Definition
- 1Panthera tigris, a large predatory mammal of the cat family, indigenous to Asia.
- 2Panthera tigris, a large predatory mammal of the cat family, indigenous to Asia.
- 3Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 4Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 5Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 6Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 7Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 8Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 9Certain other animals that resemble true tigers in appearance, pattern, colouration, etc.
- 10A representation of a large mythological cat, used on a coat of arms.
- 11A leopard.
- 12A relatively small country or group of countries with a fast-growing economy.
- 13A servant in livery, who rides with his master or mistress.
- 14A person who is very athletic during sexual intercourse.
- 15A ferocious, bloodthirsty and audacious person.
- 16A pneumatic box or pan used in refining sugar.
Etymology
From Middle English tygre, in part from Old English tigras (pl.), in part from Anglo-Norman tigre, both from Latin tigris, from Ancient Greek τίγρις (tígris), from Iranian (compare Avestan 𐬙𐬌𐬔𐬭𐬌 (tigri, “arrow”), 𐬙𐬌𐬖𐬭𐬀 (tiγra, “pointed”)). Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- (“to pierce, prick, be sharp”). Compare English stick.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: itger,tgier,tiegr,tigerr,tigre,ttiger
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of tiger - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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 "tiger"?
What does "tiger" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "tiger"?
How do you pronounce "tiger"?
What is the origin of the word "tiger"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “tiger”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-I-G-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtaɪɡə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “time” - see the side-by-side comparison. tiger vs time
- 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.