youngster

/ˈjʌŋstə/

//ˈjʌŋstə// noun

"youngster" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“youngster” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #20,545. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,545
frequency rank, English
366
“Y” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A young person.

Corpus desk

Index EN-youngster · youngster · English

youngster · rank #20,545 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #20,545
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 366
  • PHOTO-FINISH Wilkes

Nearest frequency peer: Wilkes (-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 “youngster”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “youngster” 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).

youngster vs younger
78% similar

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

Key facts for youngster
PropertyValue
Headwordyoungster
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈjʌŋstə/
Letters9
Frequency rank#20,545
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “youngster”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Wilkes” (#20,544), “wasteful” (#20,542), “Vulcan” (#20,541). Among 366 “Y” headwords, “youngster” is #20,545. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around youngster (IPA /ˈjʌŋstə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #20,545 among 366 “Y” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A young person.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for youngster, with forms such as "oyungster", "yonugster", and "yougnster". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "younger", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From young + -ster. Attested from the early 17th century. The correct English form is youngster, spelled Y-O-U-N-G-S-T-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A young person.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. As soon as Julia returned with a constable, Timothy, who was on the point of exhaustion, prepared to give over to him gratefully. The newcomer turned out to be a powerful youngster, fully trained and eager to help, and he stripped off his tunic at once.
  2. ‘Cook-housekeeper jobs don’t grow on trees,’ went on the woman, ‘leastways not where you can keep a youngster with you.’ [...] ‘Do you mean,’ stammered Jess, ‘that you are . . .?’ ‘Cook-housekeeper,’ the woman nodded. ‘Aren’t I telling you? It’s all confirmed!’ ‘And the youngster – me?’ asked Jessamy. ‘Well, whoever else you silly child!’ said the houseke…

Etymology

From young + -ster. Attested from the early 17th century.

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • oyungster
  • yonugster
  • yougnster
  • younggster
  • youngsetr
  • youngsster
  • youngsterr
  • youngstre
  • youngstter
  • youngtser
  • younngster
  • younsgter
  • yuongster
  • yyoungster

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

oyungster2yonugster2yougnster2younggster1youngsetr2youngsster1youngsterr1youngstre2
Edit distance from "youngster"

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 "youngster"?
"youngster" is spelled Y-O-U-N-G-S-T-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈjʌŋstə/.
What does "youngster" mean?
As a noun, "youngster" means: A young person.
What words are commonly confused with "youngster"?
"youngster" is commonly confused with "younger". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "youngster"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "youngster" is /ˈjʌŋstə/. 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 "youngster"?
From young + -ster. Attested from the early 17th century. 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 "youngster", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list