antipattern
"antipattern" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“antipattern” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A design pattern that may be commonly used, but is ineffective or counterproductive in practice.
Corpus desk
Index EN-antipattern · antipattern · English
antipattern · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "A" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | antipattern |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “antipattern” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
antipattern is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A design pattern that may be commonly used, but is ineffective or counterproductive in practice.".
No misspelling variants are generated for antipattern in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From anti- + pattern, coined by Andrew Koenig in 1995. The correct English form is antipattern, spelled A-N-T-I-P-A-T-T-E-R-N.
Definition
- 1A design pattern that may be commonly used, but is ineffective or counterproductive in practice.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how antipattern appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
If a Design Pattern gives you a general solution to a recurring problem in a particular context, then what does an anti-pattern give you? An Anti-Pattern tells you how to go from a problem to a BAD solution.
Etymology
From anti- + pattern, coined by Andrew Koenig in 1995.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "antipattern"?
What does "antipattern" mean?
What is the origin of the word "antipattern"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
What to do next
You've looked up "antipattern". Here's where to go from here.
- Browse more English words in the "A" letter cohort. A–Z browse
- PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.
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.