afterword

/ˈɑːf.tə.wɜːd/

//ˈɑːf.tə.wɜːd// noun

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

"afterword" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“afterword” is uncommon English (frequency #59,172 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,172
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - an epilogue.

Corpus desk

Index EN-afterword · afterword · English

afterword · rank #59,172 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #59,172
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH advisement

Nearest frequency peer: advisement (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “afterword”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for afterword
PropertyValue
Headwordafterword
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɑːf.tə.wɜːd/
Letters9
Frequency rank#59,172
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “afterword” 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).afterwordfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “advisement” (#59,171), “ageism” (#59,173), “Adria” (#59,170). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “afterword” is #59,172. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

afterword is uncommon English at frequency #59,172 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɑːf.tə.wɜːd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

afterword doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From after- + word. Compare foreword. The correct English form is afterword, spelled A-F-T-E-R-W-O-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    an epilogue.
  2. 2
    a postscript.
  3. 3
    an appendix.

Etymology

From after- + word. Compare foreword.

Synonyms

aftertaleafterwardafterscriptappendixafterwordconclusionendsayendspeechepiloguepostamble

Antonyms

foreword

This word in other languages

postface(Français)Nachwort(Deutsch)

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 "afterword"?
"afterword" is spelled A-F-T-E-R-W-O-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɑːf.tə.wɜːd/.
What does "afterword" mean?
As a noun, "afterword" means: an epilogue.
How do you pronounce "afterword"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "afterword" is /ˈɑːf.tə.wɜːd/. 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 "afterword"?
From after- + word. Compare foreword. 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 "afterword", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

adiabatic#59,169Abyssinia#59,165Arrington#59,197Zacharias#59,138

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list