abet

/əˈbɛt/

//əˈbɛt// verb

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

"abet" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“abet” is uncommon English (frequency #58,486 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#58,486
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To incite; to assist or encourage by aid or countenance in crime.

Corpus desk

Index EN-abet · abet · English

abet · rank #58,486 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #58,486
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH AAAS

Nearest frequency peer: AAAS (-3 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 “abet”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for abet
PropertyValue
Headwordabet
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈbɛt/
Letters4
Frequency rank#58,486
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “abet” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).abetfalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “AAAS” (#58,483), “ached” (#58,490), “acolyte” (#58,491). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “abet” is #58,486. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

abet is uncommon English at frequency #58,486 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /əˈbɛt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for abet, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English abetten, abette, from Old French abeter (“to entice”), from a- (“to”) + beter (“hound on, urge, to bait”), either from Middle Dutch bētan (“incite”) or from Old Norse beita (“to cause to bite, bait, incite”), from Proto-Germanic *baitija… The correct English form is abet, spelled A-B-E-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To incite; to assist or encourage by aid or countenance in crime.
  2. 2
    To support, countenance, maintain, uphold, or aid (any good cause, opinion, or action).
  3. 3
    To urge on, stimulate (a person to do) something desirable.
  4. 4
    To back up one's forecast of a doubtful issue, by staking money, etc., to bet.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. aid and abet
  2. Those who would exalt themselves by abetting the strength of the Godless, and the wrength of the oppressors.

Etymology

From Middle English abetten, abette, from Old French abeter (“to entice”), from a- (“to”) + beter (“hound on, urge, to bait”), either from Middle Dutch bētan (“incite”) or from Old Norse beita (“to cause to bite, bait, incite”), from Proto-Germanic *baitijaną (“to cause to bite”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeyd- (“to split”). Cognate with Icelandic beita (“to set dogs on; to feed”). Alternate etymology traces the Middle English and Old French words through Old English *ābǣtan (“to hound on”), from ā- + bǣtan (“to bait”), from the same source (Proto-Germanic *baitijaną). See also bait, bet.

This word in other languages

incitar(Español)encourager(Français)ermutigen(Deutsch)incitar(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 "abet"?
"abet" is spelled A-B-E-T. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈbɛt/.
What does "abet" mean?
As a verb, "abet" means: To incite; to assist or encourage by aid or countenance in crime.
How do you pronounce "abet"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "abet" is /əˈbɛt/. 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 "abet"?
From Middle English abetten, abette, from Old French abeter (“to entice”), from a- (“to”) + beter (“hound on, urge, to bait”), either from Middle Dutch bētan (“incite”) or from Old Norse beita (“to cause to bite, bait, incite”), from Proto-Germani... 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 "abet", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

AAAS#58,483zoot#58,474WWDC#58,466beek#58,542

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list