turkey

/ˈtɜːki/

//ˈtɜːki// noun

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

"turkey" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“turkey” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,706. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,706
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The guinea fowl (family Numididae).

Corpus desk

Index EN-turkey · turkey · English

turkey · rank #2,706 · 9 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,706
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tournament

Nearest frequency peer: tournament (-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 “turkey”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “turkey” 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).

turkey vs turned
67% similar
turkey vs turner
67% similar
turkey vs turret
67% similar

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

Key facts for turkey
PropertyValue
Headwordturkey
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈtɜːki/
Letters6
Frequency rank#2,706
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “turkey”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).turkeylands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “tournament” (#2,705), “tool” (#2,704), “victim” (#2,708). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “turkey” is #2,706. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around turkey (IPA /ˈtɜːki/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,706 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 11 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for turkey, with forms such as "trukey", "tturkey", and "tukrey". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 9 confusable-pair relationships, "turned", "turner", "turret", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Clipping of turkey-cock and turkey-hen, originally denoting the guinea fowl, an African bird that was first imported to Europe through Turkey, but there is some controversy over the origin. The word was then transferred to the superficially similar North Am… The correct English form is turkey, spelled T-U-R-K-E-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The guinea fowl (family Numididae).
  2. 2
    A bird in the genus Meleagris with a fan-shaped tail and wattled neck.
  3. 3
    A bird in the genus Meleagris with a fan-shaped tail and wattled neck.
  4. 4
    The flesh or meat of this bird eaten as food.
  5. 5
    With a distinguishing word: a bird resembling the Meleagris gallopavo (for example, the brush turkey or bush turkey (Alectura lathami), and the water turkey (Anhinga anhinga)).
  6. 6
    An act of throwing three strikes in a row.
  7. 7
    A patient feigning symptoms; a person faking illness or injury; a malingerer.
  8. 8
    A pack carried by a lumberman; a bindle; also, a large travel bag, a suitcase.
  9. 9
    A failure.
  10. 10
    A foolish or inept person.
  11. 11
    A prostitute.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. It was a Turkey! He never could have stood upon his legs, that bird. He would have snapped 'em short off in a minute, like sticks of sealing-wax.
  2. All week after Thanksgiving, I had turkey sandwiches for lunch.

Etymology

Clipping of turkey-cock and turkey-hen, originally denoting the guinea fowl, an African bird that was first imported to Europe through Turkey, but there is some controversy over the origin. The word was then transferred to the superficially similar North American bird Meleagris gallopavo.

This word in other languages

pavo(Español)dinde(Français)Pute(Deutsch)peru(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • trukey
  • tturkey
  • tukrey
  • tureky
  • turkeyy
  • turkkey
  • turkye
  • turrkey
  • utrkey

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

trukey2tturkey1tukrey2tureky2turkeyy1turkkey1turkye2turrkey1
Edit distance from "turkey"

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 "turkey"?
"turkey" is spelled T-U-R-K-E-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɜːki/.
What does "turkey" mean?
As a noun, "turkey" means: The guinea fowl (family Numididae).
What words are commonly confused with "turkey"?
"turkey" is commonly confused with "turned", "turner", "turret". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "turkey"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "turkey" is /ˈtɜːki/. 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 "turkey"?
Clipping of turkey-cock and turkey-hen, originally denoting the guinea fowl, an African bird that was first imported to Europe through Turkey, but there is some controversy over the origin. The word was then transferred to the superficially simila... 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 "turkey", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

victim#2,708agents#2,711severe#2,701Amazon#2,712

Similar misspelling depth

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

carbon9 variantscircle9 variantspattern9 variantsobject9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list