acetate

/ˈæsɪteɪ̯t/

//ˈæsɪteɪ̯t// noun

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

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

The verdict

“acetate” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #23,738. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#23,738
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any ester or salt of acetic acid.

Corpus desk

Index EN-acetate · acetate · English

acetate · rank #23,738 · 9 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #23,738
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH Abuja

Nearest frequency peer: Abuja (-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 “acetate”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “acetate” 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).

acetate vs acetone
71% similar
acetate vs agitate
71% similar

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

Key facts for acetate
PropertyValue
Headwordacetate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæsɪteɪ̯t/
Letters7
Frequency rank#23,738
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “acetate”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).acetatelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Abuja” (#23,737), “affirming” (#23,739), “abba” (#23,736). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “acetate” is #23,738. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around acetate (IPA /ˈæsɪteɪ̯t/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #23,738 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for acetate, with forms such as "accetate", "aceatte", and "acetaet". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "acetone", "agitate", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Formed from the root of Latin acētum (“vinegar”) + -ate, from aceō (“I am sour”). By surface analysis, acet- + -ate. The correct English form is acetate, spelled A-C-E-T-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any ester or salt of acetic acid.
  2. 2
    Cellulose acetate.
  3. 3
    A transparent sheet used for overlays, whether of cellulose acetate or (loosely) any macroscopically similar plastic.
  4. 4
    In full acetate disc: a disc of aluminium covered in a wax used to make demonstration copies of a phonograph record.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. […] to pad a piece in diluted acetate of alumine to obtain a pale lemon ground […]
  2. Performers use acetate because eyelash glue is not available. They create eyelashes out of horse hair or cut from carbon paper. Their nails are glued on with a shoe adhesive.

Etymology

Formed from the root of Latin acētum (“vinegar”) + -ate, from aceō (“I am sour”). By surface analysis, acet- + -ate.

This word in other languages

acetato(Español)acétate(Français)Azetat(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • accetate
  • aceatte
  • acetaet
  • acetatte
  • acettae
  • acettate
  • acteate
  • aectate
  • caetate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

accetate1aceatte2acetaet2acetatte1acettae2acettate1acteate2aectate2
Edit distance from "acetate"

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 "acetate"?
"acetate" is spelled A-C-E-T-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæsɪteɪ̯t/.
What does "acetate" mean?
As a noun, "acetate" means: Any ester or salt of acetic acid.
What words are commonly confused with "acetate"?
"acetate" is commonly confused with "acetone", "agitate". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "acetate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "acetate" is /ˈæsɪteɪ̯t/. 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 "acetate"?
Formed from the root of Latin acētum (“vinegar”) + -ate, from aceō (“I am sour”). By surface analysis, acet- + -ate. 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 "acetate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

anthrax#23,744wrapper#23,729aqueous#23,748Barnard#23,755

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

Bertha9 variantsbowing9 variantsbrewed9 variantstycoon9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list