assimilate
/əˈsɪm.ɪ.leɪt/
"assimilate" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“assimilate” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #27,057 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #27,057
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To incorporate nutrients into the body, especially after digestion.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | assimilate |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /əˈsɪm.ɪ.leɪt/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #27,057 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “assimilate” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for assimilate is 10 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /əˈsɪm.ɪ.leɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #27,057 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for assimilate, with forms such as "asimilate", "asismilate", and "assiimlate". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in the early 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; Middle English assimilaten (“to become similar; to make like”), from assimilat(e) (“assimilated”, also used as the past participal of assimilaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), borrowed from Late L… The correct English form is assimilate, spelled A-S-S-I-M-I-L-A-T-E.
Definition
- 1To incorporate nutrients into the body, especially after digestion.
- 2To incorporate or absorb (knowledge) into the mind.
- 3To absorb (a person or people) into a community or culture.
- 4To liken, compare to something similar.
- 5To bring to a likeness or to conformity; to cause a resemblance between.
- 6To become similar.
- 7To be incorporated or absorbed into something.
Etymology
First attested in the early 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; Middle English assimilaten (“to become similar; to make like”), from assimilat(e) (“assimilated”, also used as the past participal of assimilaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), borrowed from Late Latin assimilātus, variant of Latin assimulātus (“made similar, imitated”), perfect passive participle of assimulō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ad + simulō (“to imitate, copy”), from similis (“like, similar”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sem- (“together, one”). Doublet of assemble.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: asimilate,asismilate,assiimlate,assimialte,assimilaet,assimilatte,assimillate,assimiltae,assimliate,assimmilate,assmiilate,sasimilate
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of assimilate - 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 “assimilate”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-S-S-I-M-I-L-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /əˈsɪm.ɪ.leɪt/ (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.