acquit

/əˈkwɪt/

//əˈkwɪt// verb

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

"acquit" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“acquit” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #48,042. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#48,042
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To declare or find innocent or not guilty.

Corpus desk

Index EN-acquit · acquit · English

acquit · rank #48,042 · 8 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #48,042
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH accruing

Nearest frequency peer: accruing (-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 “acquit”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “acquit” 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).

acquit vs acuity
67% similar
acquit vs Asquith
57% similar
acquit vs acquire
71% similar

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

Key facts for acquit
PropertyValue
Headwordacquit
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈkwɪt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#48,042
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “acquit”

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).acquitlands 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 “accruing” (#48,041), “adjuvant” (#48,043), “admixture” (#48,044). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “acquit” is #48,042. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around acquit (IPA /əˈkwɪt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #48,042 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for acquit, with forms such as "accquit", "acqiut", and "acqquit". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "acuity", "Asquith", "acquire", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English aquī̆ten (“to give in return; to pay, repay; to redeem (a pledge, security), to make good (a promise); to make amends; to relieve of an obligation; to acquit, clear of a charge; to free; to deprive of; to do one's part, acquit oneself; t… The correct English form is acquit, spelled A-C-Q-U-I-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To declare or find innocent or not guilty.
  2. 2
    To discharge (for example, a claim or debt); to clear off, to pay off; to fulfil.
  3. 3
    to discharge, release, or set free from a burden, duty, liability, or obligation, or from an accusation or charge.
  4. 4
    To bear or conduct oneself; to perform one's part.
  5. 5
    To clear oneself.
  6. 6
    past participle of acquit.
  7. 7
    To release, to rescue, to set free.
  8. 8
    To pay for; to atone for.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. [W]hen God ſaith of himſelfe, that he is one who acquiting will not acquite the wicked, his meaning is, that whatſoeuer may be ſuppoſed becauſe of his patience, yet he will not fully and finally diſcharge thoſe who goe on ſtill in their vngodly courſes, and preſume vpon his Mercy, without repentance.
  2. But gently could his passion entertaine, / Though she Love's princesse, he a lowly swaine. / First of his bold intrusion she acquites him, / Then to her service (happy Boy!) admits him, / And, like another Love, with bow and quiver fits him.

Etymology

From Middle English aquī̆ten (“to give in return; to pay, repay; to redeem (a pledge, security), to make good (a promise); to make amends; to relieve of an obligation; to acquit, clear of a charge; to free; to deprive of; to do one's part, acquit oneself; to act, behave (in a certain way)”), from Old French aquiter (“to act, do”) and Medieval Latin acquitāre (“to settle a debt”), from ad- (“to”) + quitare (“to free”), equivalent to a- + quit. Doublet of acquiet; also related to quit, quiet and acquiesce.

Synonyms

acquittanceassoilassoilzieacquitabsolvecleardisculpdisculpateexculpateexoneratevindicate

Antonyms

accuseblamechargeconvictcondemnimpeachincriminateinculpateindict

This word in other languages

innocenter(Français)freisprechen(Deutsch)inocentar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • accquit
  • acqiut
  • acqquit
  • acquitt
  • acquti
  • acuqit
  • aqcuit
  • caquit

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

accquit1acqiut2acqquit1acquitt1acquti2acuqit2aqcuit2caquit2
Edit distance from "acquit"

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 "acquit"?
"acquit" is spelled A-C-Q-U-I-T. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈkwɪt/.
What does "acquit" mean?
As a verb, "acquit" means: To declare or find innocent or not guilty.
What words are commonly confused with "acquit"?
"acquit" is commonly confused with "acuity", "Asquith", "acquire". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "acquit"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "acquit" is /əˈkwɪt/. 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 "acquit"?
From Middle English aquī̆ten (“to give in return; to pay, repay; to redeem (a pledge, security), to make good (a promise); to make amends; to relieve of an obligation; to acquit, clear of a charge; to free; to deprive of; to do one's part, acquit ... 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 "acquit", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Aarhus#48,037amuses#48,056Arjuna#48,067Wiccan#48,017

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

asides8 variantsvamps8 variantsunseat8 variantsbowyer8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list