nacho

\nat.ʃo\

/\nat.ʃo\/ noun

The verdict

“nacho” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #48,065 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#48,065
frequency rank, French
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Chips de maïs en forme de triangle qui compose le plat de nachos.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

nacho vs nah
60% similar
nacho vs Nash
40% similar
nacho vs nano
60% similar

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

Key facts for nacho
PropertyValue
Headwordnacho
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\nat.ʃo\
Letters5
Frequency rank#48,065
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “nacho” sits in French frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for nacho is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \nat.ʃo\. Corpus data places it at rank #48,065 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Chips de maïs en forme de triangle qui compose le plat de nachos.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for nacho, with forms such as "ancho", "naccho", and "nachho". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 6 confusable-pair relationships, "nah", "Nash", "nano", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No documented word history exists for this headword, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is nacho, spelled N-A-C-H-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    Chips de maïs en forme de triangle qui compose le plat de nachos.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ancho,naccho,nachho,nacoh,nahco,ncaho,nnacho

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of nacho - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ancho2naccho1nachho1nacoh2nahco2ncaho2nnacho1
Edit distance from "nacho"

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 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "nacho"?
"nacho" is spelled N-A-C-H-O. The IPA pronunciation is \nat.ʃo\.
What does "nacho" mean?
As a noun, "nacho" means: Chips de maïs en forme de triangle qui compose le plat de nachos.
What words are commonly confused with "nacho"?
"nacho" is commonly confused with "nah", "Nash", "nano". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "nacho"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nacho" is \nat.ʃo\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "nacho" come from?
"nacho" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

Using “nacho”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is N-A-C-H-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \nat.ʃo\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “nah” - see the side-by-side comparison. nacho vs nah
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list