tomcat
"tomcat" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“tomcat” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #48,531 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #48,531
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A tom (male cat).
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 | tomcat |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #48,531 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “tomcat” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for tomcat is 6 letters long, classified as a noun. Corpus data places it at rank #48,531 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 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 tomcat, with forms such as "otmcat", "tmocat", and "tocmat". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "toma", "tomato", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Tom + cat, popularised by The Life and Adventures of a Cat (1760), by an anonymous author, in which the male cat was called Tom. The correct English form is tomcat, spelled T-O-M-C-A-T.
Definition
- 1A tom (male cat).
- 2A promiscuous man.
- 3An insect of the order Coleoptera referring to certain species of rove beetles, particularly in the genus Paederus. Known for secreting a potent irritant, pederin, which can cause severe skin irritation and blistering when contacted.
Etymology
From Tom + cat, popularised by The Life and Adventures of a Cat (1760), by an anonymous author, in which the male cat was called Tom.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: otmcat,tmocat,tocmat,tomact,tomcatt,tomccat,tomcta,tommcat,ttomcat
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of tomcat - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 “tomcat”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-O-M-C-A-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Don't mix it up with “toma” - see the side-by-side comparison. tomcat vs toma
- 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.