abolish

/əˈbɒlɪʃ/

//əˈbɒlɪʃ// verb

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

The verdict

“abolish” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #15,315. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#15,315
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To end a law, system, institution, custom or practice.

Corpus desk

Index EN-abolish · abolish · English

abolish · rank #15,315 · 10 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #15,315
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH Abel

Nearest frequency peer: Abel (-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 “abolish”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “abolish” 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).

abolish vs abolished
78% similar

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

Key facts for abolish
PropertyValue
Headwordabolish
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈbɒlɪʃ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#15,315
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “abolish”

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).abolishlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Abel” (#15,314), “ACA” (#15,316), “accessing” (#15,317). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “abolish” is #15,315. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around abolish (IPA /əˈbɒlɪʃ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #15,315 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for abolish, with forms such as "abbolish", "abloish", and "aboilsh". 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, "abolished", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From late Middle English abolisshen, from Middle French aboliss-, extended stem of abolir, from Latin abolēre (“to retard, check the growth of, (and by extension) destroy, abolish”), and inchoative abolēscere (“to wither, vanish, cease”). The correct English form is abolish, spelled A-B-O-L-I-S-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    To end a law, system, institution, custom or practice.
  2. 2
    To put an end to or destroy, as a physical object; to wipe out.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Slavery was abolished in the nineteenth century.
  2. The abolition of the death penalty in international law

Etymology

From late Middle English abolisshen, from Middle French aboliss-, extended stem of abolir, from Latin abolēre (“to retard, check the growth of, (and by extension) destroy, abolish”), and inchoative abolēscere (“to wither, vanish, cease”).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • abbolish
  • abloish
  • aboilsh
  • abolihs
  • abolishh
  • abolissh
  • abollish
  • abolsih
  • aoblish
  • baolish

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

abbolish1abloish2aboilsh2abolihs2abolishh1abolissh1abollish1abolsih2
Edit distance from "abolish"

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 "abolish"?
"abolish" is spelled A-B-O-L-I-S-H. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈbɒlɪʃ/.
What does "abolish" mean?
As a verb, "abolish" means: To end a law, system, institution, custom or practice.
What words are commonly confused with "abolish"?
"abolish" is commonly confused with "abolished". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "abolish"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "abolish" is /əˈbɒlɪʃ/. 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 "abolish"?
From late Middle English abolisshen, from Middle French aboliss-, extended stem of abolir, from Latin abolēre (“to retard, check the growth of, (and by extension) destroy, abolish”), and inchoative abolēscere (“to wither, vanish, cease”). 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 "abolish", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list