antipathy

/ænˈtɪpəθi/

//ænˈtɪpəθi// noun

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

The verdict

“antipathy” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #41,507 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#41,507
frequency rank, English
9
letters
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Often followed by against, between, for, or to: a (deep) feeling of dislike or repugnance, normally towards a person and less often towards a thing, often without any conscious reasoning; aversion,...

Key facts for antipathy
PropertyValue
Headwordantipathy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ænˈtɪpəθi/
Letters9
Frequency rank#41,507
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “antipathy” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). antipathy lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for antipathy is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ænˈtɪpəθi/. Corpus data places it at rank #41,507 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for antipathy, with forms such as "anitpathy", "anntipathy", and "antiapthy". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *h₂énti Borrowed from Middle French antipathie (“deep dislike; object of dislike; incompatibility between things”) (modern French antipathie (“dislike, antipathy”)), and from its etymon Latin antipathīa (“counteraction; natural aversion, antipathy… The correct English form is antipathy, spelled A-N-T-I-P-A-T-H-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Often followed by against, between, for, or to: a (deep) feeling of dislike or repugnance, normally towards a person and less often towards a thing, often without any conscious reasoning; aversion, distaste, hostility; (countable) an instance of this.
  2. 2
    Natural contrariety or incompatibility between things, as a result of which they negatively affect or oppose each other; (countable) an instance of this.
  3. 3
    A person or thing that one has a (deep) feeling of dislike or repugnance towards; an anathema, a bête noire, a bugbear.
  4. 4
    A person or thing that has a (deep) feeling of dislike or repugnance towards another person or thing; a hater.
  5. 5
    The quality of being antipathetic: not easily united by grafting.

Etymology

PIE word *h₂énti Borrowed from Middle French antipathie (“deep dislike; object of dislike; incompatibility between things”) (modern French antipathie (“dislike, antipathy”)), and from its etymon Latin antipathīa (“counteraction; natural aversion, antipathy”), from Ancient Greek ἀντῐπάθειᾰ (antĭpátheiă, “suffering instead”), Koine Greek ἀντῐπάθειᾰ (antĭpátheiă, “contrary affection; contrast; counteraction; opposition”), from ἀντῐπᾰθής (antĭpăthḗs, “(adjective) felt mutually; in return for suffering; (noun) remedy for suffering”) (from ἀντι- (anti-, prefix meaning ‘against’) + πᾰ́θος (pắthos, “death; disaster; misfortune; pain; suffering; strong feeling, emotion, passion, pathos”) (further etymology uncertain, possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰendʰ- (“to bind; a bond”) or *kʷendʰ- (“to endure; to suffer”)) + -ης (-ēs, suffix forming third-declension adjectives)) + -ειᾰ (-eiă, suffix forming feminine adjectives and nouns).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: anitpathy,anntipathy,antiapthy,antipahty,antipathhy,antipathyy,antipatthy,antipatyh,antippathy,antiptahy,antpiathy,anttipathy,atnipathy,natipathy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

anitpathy2anntipathy1antiapthy2antipahty2antipathhy1antipathyy1antipatthy1antipatyh2
Edit distance from "antipathy"

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 "antipathy"?
"antipathy" is spelled A-N-T-I-P-A-T-H-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ænˈtɪpəθi/.
What does "antipathy" mean?
As a noun, "antipathy" means: Often followed by against, between, for, or to: a (deep) feeling of dislike or repugnance, normally towards a person and less often towards a thing, often without any conscious reasoning; aversion,...
What are common misspellings of "antipathy"?
Common misspellings include "anitpathy", "anntipathy", "antiapthy", "antipahty", "antipathhy". The correct spelling is "antipathy".
How do you pronounce "antipathy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "antipathy" is /ænˈtɪpəθi/. 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 "antipathy"?
PIE word *h₂énti Borrowed from Middle French antipathie (“deep dislike; object of dislike; incompatibility between things”) (modern French antipathie (“dislike, antipathy”)), and from its etymon Latin antipathīa (“counteraction; natural aversion,... 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.

Using “antipathy”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is A-N-T-I-P-A-T-H-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ænˈtɪpəθi/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list