whaler

/ˈweɪlə/

//ˈweɪlə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“whaler” is uncommon English (frequency #62,618 among 1,759 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#62,618
frequency rank, English
1,759
“W” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One who hunts whales; any person employed in the whaling industry.

Corpus desk

Index EN-whaler · whaler · English

whaler · rank #62,618 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #62,618
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,759
  • PHOTO-FINISH whatevs

Nearest frequency peer: whatevs (+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 “whaler”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for whaler
PropertyValue
Headwordwhaler
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈweɪlə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#62,618
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “whaler” in English

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).whalerfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “whatevs” (#62,619), “Whitehorse” (#62,621), “whitelist” (#62,622). Among 1,759 “W” headwords, “whaler” is #62,618. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

whaler is uncommon English at frequency #62,618 among 1,759 “W” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈweɪlə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for whaler in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From whale + -er. In sense 1, displaced Old English hwælhunta (literally “whale hunter”). The correct English form is whaler, spelled W-H-A-L-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    One who hunts whales; any person employed in the whaling industry.
  2. 2
    A seagoing vessel used for hunting whales.
  3. 3
    One who whales (flogs or beats).
  4. 4
    A large, strong person.
  5. 5
    Something of unusually great size, a whopper, a whacker.
  6. 6
    Any shark of the family Carcharhinidae; a requiem shark.
  7. 7
    A sundowner; one who cruises about.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Near-synonym: whaleman
  2. For a whaler's wife to have been “ 'round the Cape” half a dozen times, or even more, was nothing extraordinary.

Etymology

From whale + -er. In sense 1, displaced Old English hwælhunta (literally “whale hunter”).

This word in other languages

ballenero(Español)baleinier(Français)Walfänger(Deutsch)baleeiro(Português)

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 "whaler"?
"whaler" is spelled W-H-A-L-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈweɪlə/.
What does "whaler" mean?
As a noun, "whaler" means: One who hunts whales; any person employed in the whaling industry.
How do you pronounce "whaler"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "whaler" is /ˈweɪlə/. 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 "whaler"?
From whale + -er. In sense 1, displaced Old English hwælhunta (literally “whale hunter”). 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 "whaler", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

vainly#62,600Yamuna#62,636Umbria#62,588Advani#62,655

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list