whisker

/ʍɪskə(ɹ)/

//ʍɪskə(ɹ)// noun

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

"whisker" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“whisker” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #49,721. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#49,721
frequency rank, English
1,759
“W” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - That part of the beard which grows upon the sides of the face, usually of the male, or upon the chin, or upon both.

Corpus desk

Index EN-whisker · whisker · English

whisker · rank #49,721 · 11 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #49,721
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,759
  • PHOTO-FINISH whimpering

Nearest frequency peer: whimpering (-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 “whisker”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “whisker” 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).

whisker vs wiser
71% similar
whisker vs whisky
71% similar
whisker vs wicker
71% similar

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

Key facts for whisker
PropertyValue
Headwordwhisker
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ʍɪskə(ɹ)/
Letters7
Frequency rank#49,721
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “whisker”

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).whiskerlands 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 “whimpering” (#49,720), “whorl” (#49,722), “westerner” (#49,719). Among 1,759 “W” headwords, “whisker” is #49,721. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around whisker (IPA /ʍɪskə(ɹ)/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #49,721 among 1,759 “W” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for whisker, with forms such as "hwisker", "whhisker", and "whikser". 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, "wiser", "whisky", "wicker", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English wisker, whisk (verb) + -er. The correct English form is whisker, spelled W-H-I-S-K-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    That part of the beard which grows upon the sides of the face, usually of the male, or upon the chin, or upon both.
  2. 2
    A hair of the beard.
  3. 3
    One of the long, projecting hairs growing at the sides of the mouth of a cat, or other animal.
  4. 4
    The (very small) distance between two things.
  5. 5
    Spreaders from the bows to spread the bowsprit shrouds.
  6. 6
    A graphic element that shows the maxima and minima in a box plot.
  7. 7
    One who, or that which, whisks, or moves with a quick, sweeping motion.
  8. 8
    A small tendril that forms on metal.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. It missed falling on your foot by a whisker.
  2. Boosted by their reward, Wolves continued to push forward and Jamie O'Hara came within a whisker of doubling the lead, smashing a 25-yard effort on to the bar.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English wisker, whisk (verb) + -er.

This word in other languages

bigote(Español)favoris(Français)Barthaar(Deutsch)costeleta(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hwisker
  • whhisker
  • whikser
  • whisekr
  • whiskerr
  • whiskker
  • whiskre
  • whissker
  • whsiker
  • wihsker
  • wwhisker

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of whisker - 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.

hwisker2whhisker1whikser2whisekr2whiskerr1whiskker1whiskre2whissker1
Edit distance from "whisker"

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 "whisker"?
"whisker" is spelled W-H-I-S-K-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ʍɪskə(ɹ)/.
What does "whisker" mean?
As a noun, "whisker" means: That part of the beard which grows upon the sides of the face, usually of the male, or upon the chin, or upon both.
What words are commonly confused with "whisker"?
"whisker" is commonly confused with "wiser", "whisky", "wicker". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "whisker"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "whisker" is /ʍɪskə(ɹ)/. 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 "whisker"?
Inherited from Middle English wisker, whisk (verb) + -er. 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 "whisker", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Warnock#49,716walleye#49,714Wozniak#49,729vibrato#49,709

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

vanadium11 variantsadorning11 variantsAshdown11 variantstimezone11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list