tuple

/ˈtʊpəl/

//ˈtʊpəl// noun

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

"tuple" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“tuple” is uncommon English (frequency #57,139 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#57,139
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A finite sequence of terms.

Corpus desk

Index EN-tuple · tuple · English

tuple · rank #57,139 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #57,139
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH Tupper

Nearest frequency peer: Tupper (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “tuple”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “tuple” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for tuple
PropertyValue
Headwordtuple
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtʊpəl/
Letters5
Frequency rank#57,139
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “tuple” in English

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

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Tupper” (#57,140), “trigonometric” (#57,137), “twiggy” (#57,141). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “tuple” is #57,139. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

tuple is uncommon English at frequency #57,139 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈtʊpəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for tuple, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From the ending of the words quintuple, sextuple; from Latin -plus. The correct English form is tuple, spelled T-U-P-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A finite sequence of terms.
  2. 2
    A single row in a relational database.
  3. 3
    A set of comma-separated values passed to a program or operating system as a parameter to a function call.
  4. 4
    A fixed-size container data type similar to a list that can hold different types of elements.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Both Python and Haskell have a tuple data type as well as a list data type.
  2. Unlike lists, tuples are not formed by consing.

Etymology

From the ending of the words quintuple, sextuple; from Latin -plus.

This word in other languages

uplet(Français)Tupel(Deutsch)

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 "tuple"?
"tuple" is spelled T-U-P-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtʊpəl/.
What does "tuple" mean?
As a noun, "tuple" means: A finite sequence of terms.
How do you pronounce "tuple"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tuple" is /ˈtʊpəl/. 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 "tuple"?
From the ending of the words quintuple, sextuple; from Latin -plus. 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 "tuple", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

unlit#57,148Tigre#57,128Vanya#57,155Syrah#57,117

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list