torpedo
/ˌtɔː(ɹ)ˈpiː.dəʊ/
"torpedo" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“torpedo” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #16,370 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #16,370
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An electric ray of the genus Torpedo.
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 | torpedo |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌtɔː(ɹ)ˈpiː.dəʊ/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #16,370 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “torpedo” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for torpedo is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌtɔː(ɹ)ˈpiː.dəʊ/. Corpus data places it at rank #16,370 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 15 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for torpedo, with forms such as "otrpedo", "topredo", and "torepdo". 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, "toledo", "tornado", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: * Borrowed from Latin torpēdō (“a torpedo fish; numbness, torpidity, electric ray”), from torpeō (“to be stiff, numb, torpid; to be astounded; to be inactive”) + -ēdō (noun suffix), from Proto-Indo-European *ster- (“stiff”). In the military sense coined by … The correct English form is torpedo, spelled T-O-R-P-E-D-O.
Definition
- 1An electric ray of the genus Torpedo.
- 2A cylindrical explosive projectile that can travel underwater and is used as a weapon.
- 3A cylindrical explosive projectile that can travel underwater and is used as a weapon.
- 4Synonym of submarine sandwich.
- 5A naval mine.
- 6An explosive device buried underground and set off remotely, to destroy fortifications, troops, or cavalry; a land torpedo.
- 7A professional gunman or assassin.
- 8A small explosive device attached to the top of the rail to provide an audible warning when a train passes over it.
- 9A kind of firework in the form of a small ball, or pellet, which explodes when thrown upon a hard object.
- 10An automobile with a streamlined profile and a folding or detachable soft top, and having the hood or bonnet line raised to be level with the car's waistline, resulting in a straight beltline from front to back.
- 11A focal ovoid swelling on the axons of Purkinje cells, observed in several diseases such as essential tremor and spinocerebellar ataxia.
- 12A woman's shoe with a pointed toe.
- 13A large breast; a breast with a large nipple.
- 14A marijuana cigarette.
- 15A marijuana cigarette.
Etymology
* Borrowed from Latin torpēdō (“a torpedo fish; numbness, torpidity, electric ray”), from torpeō (“to be stiff, numb, torpid; to be astounded; to be inactive”) + -ēdō (noun suffix), from Proto-Indo-European *ster- (“stiff”). In the military sense coined by Robert Fulton in 1805. Cognate with Old English steorfan (“to die”), Ancient Greek στερεός (stereós, “solid”), Lithuanian tirpstu (“to become rigid”), Old Church Slavonic трупети (trupeti). * (type of car): From 1908, after "the Torpedo", a car designed by Captain Theo Masui.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: otrpedo,topredo,torepdo,torpdeo,torpeddo,torpeod,torppedo,torrpedo,tropedo,ttorpedo
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of torpedo - 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.
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 "torpedo"?
What does "torpedo" mean?
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Using “torpedo”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-O-R-P-E-D-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌtɔː(ɹ)ˈpiː.dəʊ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “toledo” - see the side-by-side comparison. torpedo vs toledo
- 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.