alienate

/ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt/

//ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt// adj

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

"alienate" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“alienate” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #27,714. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#27,714
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Estranged; withdrawn in affection; foreign

Corpus desk

Index EN-alienate · alienate · English

alienate · rank #27,714 · 10 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #27,714
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH aftermarket

Nearest frequency peer: aftermarket (-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 “alienate”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “alienate” 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).

alienate vs alternate
78% similar

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

Key facts for alienate
PropertyValue
Headwordalienate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#27,714
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “alienate”

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).alienatelands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “aftermarket” (#27,713), “alphabetically” (#27,715), “aerosol” (#27,712). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “alienate” is #27,714. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around alienate (IPA /ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #27,714 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Estranged; withdrawn in affection; foreign".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for alienate, with forms such as "ailenate", "aleinate", and "alieante". 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, "alternate", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English alienat(e) (“deranged; uncertain; sequestred, secluded”), from Latin aliēnātus, perfect passive participle of aliēnō (“to estrange, alienate”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from aliēnus. by surface analysis, alien + -ate. See al… The correct English form is alienate, spelled A-L-I-E-N-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Estranged; withdrawn in affection; foreign

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. O alienate from God.

Etymology

From Middle English alienat(e) (“deranged; uncertain; sequestred, secluded”), from Latin aliēnātus, perfect passive participle of aliēnō (“to estrange, alienate”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from aliēnus. by surface analysis, alien + -ate. See alien, and compare aliene.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ailenate
  • aleinate
  • alieante
  • alienaet
  • alienatte
  • aliennate
  • alientae
  • alineate
  • allienate
  • laienate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of alienate - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ailenate2aleinate2alieante2alienaet2alienatte1aliennate1alientae2alineate2
Edit distance from "alienate"

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 "alienate"?
"alienate" is spelled A-L-I-E-N-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt/.
What does "alienate" mean?
As an adjective, "alienate" means: Estranged; withdrawn in affection; foreign
What words are commonly confused with "alienate"?
"alienate" is commonly confused with "alternate". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "alienate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alienate" is /ˈeɪ.li.ə.neɪt/. 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 "alienate"?
From Middle English alienat(e) (“deranged; uncertain; sequestred, secluded”), from Latin aliēnātus, perfect passive participle of aliēnō (“to estrange, alienate”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from aliēnus. by surface analysis, alien + -a... 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 "alienate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

ammonium#27,717Athenian#27,726Winthrop#27,702atrocity#27,727

Similar misspelling depth

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

adjusts10 variantsbaker's10 variantsbeaming10 variantsundated10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list