apostasy

/əˈpɒ.stə.si/

//əˈpɒ.stə.si// noun

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

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

The verdict

“apostasy” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #31,856. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#31,856
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The renunciation of a belief or set of beliefs.

Corpus desk

Index EN-apostasy · apostasy · English

apostasy · rank #31,856 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #31,856
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH aorta

Nearest frequency peer: aorta (-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 “apostasy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “apostasy” 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).

apostasy vs apostate
75% similar

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

Key facts for apostasy
PropertyValue
Headwordapostasy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/əˈpɒ.stə.si/
Letters8
Frequency rank#31,856
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “apostasy”

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).apostasylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “aorta” (#31,855), “Aram” (#31,857), “Argyll” (#31,858). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “apostasy” is #31,856. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around apostasy (IPA /əˈpɒ.stə.si/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #31,856 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for apostasy, with forms such as "aopstasy", "aposatsy", and "aposstasy". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "apostate", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin apostasia, from Ancient Greek ἀποστασία (apostasía, “defection, revolt”), from ἀφίστημι (aphístēmi, “I withdraw, revolt”), from ἀπό (apó, “from”) + ἵστημι (hístēmi, “I stand”). The correct English form is apostasy, spelled A-P-O-S-T-A-S-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The renunciation of a belief or set of beliefs.
  2. 2
    Specifically, the renunciation of one's religion or faith.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The apparition of Lawyer Clippurse at the Hall occasioned much speculation in that portion of the world to which Waverley-Honour formed the centre: but the more judicious politicians of this microcosm augured yet worse consequences to Richard Waverley from a movement which shortly followed his apostasy.
  2. The King of Navarre suddenly abandoned his party and went over to the Catholics. The explanation of his apostasy was as simple as it was base: Navarre had no confidence in the success of his cause, and he cared little in his heart for anything but women and vanity.

Etymology

From Latin apostasia, from Ancient Greek ἀποστασία (apostasía, “defection, revolt”), from ἀφίστημι (aphístēmi, “I withdraw, revolt”), from ἀπό (apó, “from”) + ἵστημι (hístēmi, “I stand”).

This word in other languages

apostasía(Español)apostasie(Français)Apostasie(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aopstasy
  • aposatsy
  • aposstasy
  • apostassy
  • apostasyy
  • apostays
  • apostsay
  • aposttasy
  • apotsasy
  • appostasy
  • apsotasy
  • paostasy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of apostasy - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

aopstasy2aposatsy2aposstasy1apostassy1apostasyy1apostays2apostsay2aposttasy1
Edit distance from "apostasy"

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 "apostasy"?
"apostasy" is spelled A-P-O-S-T-A-S-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈpɒ.stə.si/.
What does "apostasy" mean?
As a noun, "apostasy" means: The renunciation of a belief or set of beliefs.
What words are commonly confused with "apostasy"?
"apostasy" is commonly confused with "apostate". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "apostasy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "apostasy" is /əˈpɒ.stə.si/. 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 "apostasy"?
From Latin apostasia, from Ancient Greek ἀποστασία (apostasía, “defection, revolt”), from ἀφίστημι (aphístēmi, “I withdraw, revolt”), from ἀπό (apó, “from”) + ἵστημι (hístēmi, “I stand”). 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 "apostasy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Wilshire#31,833Weymouth#31,829Vincenzo#31,818unjustly#31,812

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

Wyndham12 variantsbuffering12 variantsCallaghan12 variantsunoccupied12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list