traffic light
/ˈtɹæˌfɪk laɪt/
"traffic-light" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“traffic light” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 13
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A signalling device positioned at a road intersection or pedestrian crossing indicating the moment it is safe to drive, ride or walk, using a universal color code.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | traffic light |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈtɹæˌfɪk laɪt/ |
| Letters | 13 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “traffic light” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for traffic light is 13 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɹæˌfɪk laɪt/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No misspelling variants are generated for traffic light in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct English form is traffic light, spelled T-R-A-F-F-I-C- -L-I-G-H-T.
Definition
- 1A signalling device positioned at a road intersection or pedestrian crossing indicating the moment it is safe to drive, ride or walk, using a universal color code.
- 2A signalling device positioned at a road intersection or pedestrian crossing indicating the moment it is safe to drive, ride or walk, using a universal color code.
- 3A colour code using the three signals of a traffic light (green, yellow or amber, and red) as a metaphor.
- 4The colored dots on stamp sheet margins printed with offset printing or photogravure methods, used by the printers to check color accuracy.
- 5In Conway's Game of Life, an arrangement of four blinkers that are orthogonally equidistant from a central point.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “traffic light”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-R-A-F-F-I-C- -L-I-G-H-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtɹæˌfɪk laɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.