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PlainSpell

Editorial policy

PlainSpell reports what its sources record and what the measurements show, and says which is which. These are the rules every page follows.

Updated

The rules

  1. 1

    Definitions, forms, pronunciations and labels are quoted from Wiktionary as they are, with a link to the entry. We do not rewrite a definition or add a meaning.

  2. 2

    A wrong spelling is shown only when it is measured: people search it, or a published list names it and it occurs in written text. We never publish a spelling mistake that nobody makes.

  3. 3

    Every figure names its source and the period it covers. A figure we cannot trace to a source is removed.

  4. 4

    We invent nothing: no example sentences, no experts, no reviews, no ratings. Examples are Wiktionary's; the only people named are the authors of sources we cite.

  5. 5

    We report labels and do not issue rulings. When Wiktionary calls a spelling British, nonstandard or a misspelling, the page says so and says it is Wiktionary's label.

  6. 6

    Research pages lead with what the data shows, give the method and the limits, and publish the data.

Advertising

The ad slots, filled by Journey by Mediavine, sit between one section and the next; a definition, a table of spellings or a word list is never split by an ad. Advertisers do not choose which words are covered and see nothing before it is published. PlainSpell accepts no paid placements or sponsored pages.

How an error is handled

Send it to hello@plainspell.com with the page's address. We compare the page with its source. If the page is wrong, the fix is made in the pipeline, not on the one page, so every page built from the same data is corrected, and the change is listed on the corrections page with its date. If the source itself is wrong (a Wiktionary entry, for example), we say so in the reply and point to where it can be corrected.

How the site is made

The pipeline, the checks and the use of AI tools are described on the methodology page.