alleviate
/əˈli.vi.eɪt/
"alleviate" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“alleviate” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #14,461 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #14,461
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To reduce or lessen the severity of a pain or difficulty.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | alleviate |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /əˈli.vi.eɪt/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #14,461 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “alleviate” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for alleviate is 9 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /əˈli.vi.eɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #14,461 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for alleviate, with forms such as "alelviate", "aleviate", and "alleivate". 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, "alleviated", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Late Latin alleviatus, past participle of alleviāre (“to lighten; to alleviate”). The correct English form is alleviate, spelled A-L-L-E-V-I-A-T-E.
Definition
- 1To reduce or lessen the severity of a pain or difficulty.
- 2(finance) to pay down partially.
Etymology
Borrowed from Late Latin alleviatus, past participle of alleviāre (“to lighten; to alleviate”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: alelviate,aleviate,alleivate,allevaite,alleviaet,alleviatte,allevitae,allevviate,allveiate,laleviate
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of alleviate - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “alleviate”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-L-L-E-V-I-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /əˈli.vi.eɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “alleviated” - see the side-by-side comparison. alleviate vs alleviated
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.