tittle

/ˈtɪt.əl/

//ˈtɪt.əl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“tittle” is uncommon English (frequency #50,274 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#50,274
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any small dot, stroke, or diacritical mark, especially if part of a letter, or of a letter-like abbreviation; in particular, the dots over the Latin letters i and j.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tittle · tittle · English

tittle · rank #50,274 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #50,274
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH toddy

Nearest frequency peer: toddy (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “tittle”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “tittle” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for tittle
PropertyValue
Headwordtittle
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtɪt.əl/
Letters6
Frequency rank#50,274
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “tittle” in English

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

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “toddy” (#50,275), “thousandth” (#50,271), “toleration” (#50,277). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “tittle” is #50,274. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

tittle is uncommon English at frequency #50,274 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtɪt.əl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for tittle in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English tytle, titel, titele, from Anglo-Norman titil, titule and Medieval Latin titulus (“small stroke, diacritical mark, accent”), from Latin titulus (“title”). Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, title, titlo, and titulus. The correct English form is tittle, spelled T-I-T-T-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any small dot, stroke, or diacritical mark, especially if part of a letter, or of a letter-like abbreviation; in particular, the dots over the Latin letters i and j.
  2. 2
    A small, insignificant amount (of something); a modicum or speck.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The foure pricks or tittles are these. The first is a full prick or period. The second is a comma or crooked tittle.
  2. The words "jot" and "tittle" in this passage refer to diacritic marks, that is, dashes, dots, or commas added to a letter to accentuate the pronunciation.

Etymology

From Middle English tytle, titel, titele, from Anglo-Norman titil, titule and Medieval Latin titulus (“small stroke, diacritical mark, accent”), from Latin titulus (“title”). Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, title, titlo, and titulus.

This word in other languages

punto(Español)point(Français)Punkt(Deutsch)pingo(Português)

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 "tittle"?
"tittle" is spelled T-I-T-T-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɪt.əl/.
What does "tittle" mean?
As a noun, "tittle" means: Any small dot, stroke, or diacritical mark, especially if part of a letter, or of a letter-like abbreviation; in particular, the dots over the Latin letters i and j.
How do you pronounce "tittle"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tittle" is /ˈtɪt.əl/. 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 "tittle"?
From Middle English tytle, titel, titele, from Anglo-Norman titil, titule and Medieval Latin titulus (“small stroke, diacritical mark, accent”), from Latin titulus (“title”). Doublet of tilde, titer/titre, title, titlo, and titulus. 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 "tittle", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

tedium#50,268tubman#50,287snotty#50,241vellum#50,307

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list