asunder

/əˈsʌndə/

//əˈsʌndə// adv

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

"asunder" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“asunder” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #46,915. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#46,915
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Into separate parts or pieces.

Corpus desk

Index EN-asunder · asunder · English

asunder · rank #46,915 · 10 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #46,915
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH astrophysical

Nearest frequency peer: astrophysical (-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 “asunder”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “asunder” 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).

asunder vs Arundel
57% similar

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

Key facts for asunder
PropertyValue
Headwordasunder
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/əˈsʌndə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#46,915
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “asunder”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).asunderlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “astrophysical” (#46,914), “Astley” (#46,913), “Aristotelian” (#46,910). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “asunder” is #46,915. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around asunder (IPA /əˈsʌndə/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #46,915 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Into separate parts or pieces.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for asunder, with forms such as "asnuder", "assunder", and "asudner". 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. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Arundel", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English asunder, asondre, onsunder, on sondre, from Old English asundran, onsundrum (“asunder, apart, privately”), from Proto-Germanic *sunder, *sundraz. Equivalent to a- + sunder. Cognate with Danish sønder, Swedish sönder, Dutch zonder, German… The correct English form is asunder, spelled A-S-U-N-D-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Into separate parts or pieces.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. to tear asunder
  2. to crack asunder

Etymology

From Middle English asunder, asondre, onsunder, on sondre, from Old English asundran, onsundrum (“asunder, apart, privately”), from Proto-Germanic *sunder, *sundraz. Equivalent to a- + sunder. Cognate with Danish sønder, Swedish sönder, Dutch zonder, German sonder, Icelandic sundur, Faroese sundur and Norwegian sunder/sønder; akin to Gothic 𐍃𐌿𐌽𐌳𐍂𐍉 (sundrō).

Synonyms

apartasunderhalf and halfin sunderpiecemeal

This word in other languages

entzwei(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • asnuder
  • assunder
  • asudner
  • asundder
  • asunderr
  • asundre
  • asunedr
  • asunnder
  • ausnder
  • saunder

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of asunder - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

asnuder2assunder1asudner2asundder1asunderr1asundre2asunedr2asunnder1
Edit distance from "asunder"

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 "asunder"?
"asunder" is spelled A-S-U-N-D-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈsʌndə/.
What does "asunder" mean?
As an adverb, "asunder" means: Into separate parts or pieces.
What words are commonly confused with "asunder"?
"asunder" is commonly confused with "Arundel". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "asunder"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "asunder" is /əˈsʌndə/. 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 "asunder"?
From Middle English asunder, asondre, onsunder, on sondre, from Old English asundran, onsundrum (“asunder, apart, privately”), from Proto-Germanic *sunder, *sundraz. Equivalent to a- + sunder. Cognate with Danish sønder, Swedish sönder, Dutch zond... 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 "asunder", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Bauhaus#46,922aphasia#46,907amulets#46,903blatter#46,937

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

bruiser10 variantsbubonic10 variantsclamour10 variantsClarice10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list