timpani
/ˈtɪmpəni/
"timpani" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“timpani” is uncommon English (frequency #76,401 among 27,828 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #76,401
- frequency rank, English
- 27,828
- “T” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The set of precision kettledrums in an orchestra.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | timpani |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈtɪmpəni/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #76,401 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “timpani” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
timpani is uncommon English at frequency #76,401 among 27,828 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtɪmpəni/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The set of precision kettledrums in an orchestra.".
No misspelling variants are generated for timpani in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Italian timpani, plural of timpano (“drum”), from Latin tympanum (“drum”), from Ancient Greek τύμπανον (túmpanon), from τύπτω (túptō, “I strike, I hit”). Doublet of tympanum, timbre, timbal, and tymbal. The correct English form is timpani, spelled T-I-M-P-A-N-I.
Definition
- 1The set of precision kettledrums in an orchestra.
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian timpani, plural of timpano (“drum”), from Latin tympanum (“drum”), from Ancient Greek τύμπανον (túmpanon), from τύπτω (túptō, “I strike, I hit”). Doublet of tympanum, timbre, timbal, and tymbal.
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 “timpani”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-I-M-P-A-N-I - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtɪmpəni/ (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.