triangle
/ˈtɹaɪəŋɡəl/
"triangle" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“triangle” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,993 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #7,993
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A polygon with three sides and three angles.
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 | triangle |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈtɹaɪəŋɡəl/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #7,993 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “triangle” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for triangle is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɹaɪəŋɡəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,993 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for triangle, with forms such as "rtiangle", "tirangle", and "traingle". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "tangle", "triage", "tingle", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *tréyes From Middle English triangle, from Old French triangle, from Latin triangulum, noun use of adjective triangulus (“three-cornered, having three angles”), from trēs (“three”) + angulus (“corner, angle”), equivalent to tri- + -angle. The correct English form is triangle, spelled T-R-I-A-N-G-L-E.
Definition
- 1A polygon with three sides and three angles.
- 2A set square.
- 3A percussion instrument made by forming a metal rod into a triangular shape which is open at one angle. It is suspended from a string and hit with a metal bar to make a resonant sound.
- 4A triangular piece of equipment used for gathering the balls into the formation required by the game being played.
- 5A love triangle.
- 6The structure of systems composed with three interrelated objects.
- 7A draughtsman's square in the form of a right-angled triangle.
- 8A frame formed of three poles stuck in the ground and united at the top, to which people were bound for corporal punishment.
- 9Any of various large papilionid butterflies of the genus Graphium.
- 10A triangular formation of railway tracks, with a curve on at least one side.
Etymology
PIE word *tréyes From Middle English triangle, from Old French triangle, from Latin triangulum, noun use of adjective triangulus (“three-cornered, having three angles”), from trēs (“three”) + angulus (“corner, angle”), equivalent to tri- + -angle.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: rtiangle,tirangle,traingle,triagnle,triangel,trianggle,trianglle,trianlge,trianngle,trinagle,trriangle,ttriangle
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of triangle - 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 "triangle"?
What does "triangle" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "triangle"?
How do you pronounce "triangle"?
What is the origin of the word "triangle"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “triangle”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-R-I-A-N-G-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtɹaɪəŋɡəl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “tangle” - see the side-by-side comparison. triangle vs tangle
- 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.