topical

/ˈtɒp.ɪ.kəl/

//ˈtɒp.ɪ.kəl// adj

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

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

The verdict

“topical” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,151. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,151
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Relating to a particular topic or subject.

Corpus desk

Index EN-topical · topical · English

topical · rank #16,151 · 9 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,151
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tongues

Nearest frequency peer: tongues (-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 “topical”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “topical” 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).

topical vs topics
71% similar
topical vs typical
86% similar
topical vs tropical
88% similar

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

Key facts for topical
PropertyValue
Headwordtopical
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈtɒp.ɪ.kəl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#16,151
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “topical”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).topicallands 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 “tongues” (#16,150), “texted” (#16,149), “uhh” (#16,153). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “topical” is #16,151. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around topical (IPA /ˈtɒp.ɪ.kəl/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #16,151 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for topical, with forms such as "toipcal", "topcial", and "topiacl". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "topics", "typical", "tropical", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From topic + -al. The correct English form is topical, spelled T-O-P-I-C-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Relating to a particular topic or subject.
  2. 2
    Relating to a topic or subject of current interest.
  3. 3
    Local to a particular place.
  4. 4
    Applied to a localized part of the body.
  5. 5
    Applied externally (to the surface of the skin or eye).
  6. 6
    Arranged according to topic or theme; thematic.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The book is divided into topical chapters.
  2. Fair trade has become quite a topical issue.

Etymology

From topic + -al.

This word in other languages

tópico(Español)d'actualité(Français)themenbezogen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • toipcal
  • topcial
  • topiacl
  • topicall
  • topiccal
  • topicla
  • toppical
  • tpoical
  • ttopical

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of topical - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

toipcal2topcial2topiacl2topicall1topiccal1topicla2toppical1tpoical2
Edit distance from "topical"

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 "topical"?
"topical" is spelled T-O-P-I-C-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɒp.ɪ.kəl/.
What does "topical" mean?
As an adjective, "topical" means: Relating to a particular topic or subject.
What words are commonly confused with "topical"?
"topical" is commonly confused with "topics", "typical", "tropical". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "topical"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "topical" is /ˈtɒp.ɪ.kəl/. 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 "topical"?
From topic + -al. 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 "topical", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

tongues#16,150steward#16,139stature#16,138Walters#16,164

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

texted9 variantsunfold9 variantsvested9 variantssmokes9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list