tonnage

/ˈtʌnɪd͡ʒ/

//ˈtʌnɪd͡ʒ// noun

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

"tonnage" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“tonnage” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #31,381. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#31,381
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The number of tons of water that a floating ship displaces.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tonnage · tonnage · English

tonnage · rank #31,381 · 8 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #31,381
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tilly

Nearest frequency peer: tilly (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “tonnage”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “tonnage” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

tonnage vs tonne
71% similar
tonnage vs teenage
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for tonnage
PropertyValue
Headwordtonnage
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtʌnɪd͡ʒ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#31,381
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “tonnage”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “tilly” (#31,380), “totes” (#31,383), “tut” (#31,384). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “tonnage” is #31,381. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around tonnage (IPA /ˈtʌnɪd͡ʒ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #31,381 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for tonnage, with forms such as "otnnage", "tnonage", and "tonage". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "tonne", "teenage", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French tonnage. The correct English form is tonnage, spelled T-O-N-N-A-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The number of tons of water that a floating ship displaces.
  2. 2
    The capacity of a ship's hold etc in units of 100 cubic feet.
  3. 3
    The number of tons of bombs dropped in a particular region over a particular period of time.
  4. 4
    A charge made on each ton of cargo when landed etc.
  5. 5
    The total shipping of a fleet or nation.
  6. 6
    A weight in tons, especially of cargo or freight.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. With her luxurious furnishings and spacious accommodation the Invicta, which is 350-ft. long and has a gross tonnage of 4,178, resembles a small liner.
  2. DB Cargo is understood to be looking at the feasibility of re-gearing some of its Class 66s to allow them to haul the same tonnages as the Class 60s it has taken out of its fleet in the latter part of 2023.

Etymology

From Old French tonnage.

Synonyms

tunnage

This word in other languages

tonelaje(Español)tonnage(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • otnnage
  • tnonage
  • tonage
  • tonange
  • tonnaeg
  • tonnagge
  • tonngae
  • ttonnage

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of tonnage - 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.

otnnage2tnonage2tonage1tonange2tonnaeg2tonnagge1tonngae2ttonnage1
Edit distance from "tonnage"

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 "tonnage"?
"tonnage" is spelled T-O-N-N-A-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtʌnɪd͡ʒ/.
What does "tonnage" mean?
As a noun, "tonnage" means: The number of tons of water that a floating ship displaces.
What words are commonly confused with "tonnage"?
"tonnage" is commonly confused with "tonne", "teenage". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "tonnage"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tonnage" is /ˈtʌnɪd͡ʒ/. 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 "tonnage"?
From Old French tonnage. 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 "tonnage", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

typhoid#31,385teeming#31,375takeout#31,372Taggart#31,371

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

spotty8 variantsseamen8 variantsablaze8 variantsseabed8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list