atheist

/ˈeɪθiɪst/

//ˈeɪθiɪst// noun

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

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

The verdict

“atheist” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #12,545. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#12,545
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who does not believe in deities or gods.

Corpus desk

Index EN-atheist · atheist · English

atheist · rank #12,545 · 10 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #12,545
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH assert

Nearest frequency peer: assert (-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 “atheist”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “atheist” 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).

atheist vs Athens
57% similar
atheist vs attest
71% similar
atheist vs atheism
86% similar

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

Key facts for atheist
PropertyValue
Headwordatheist
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈeɪθiɪst/
Letters7
Frequency rank#12,545
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “atheist”

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).atheistlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “assert” (#12,544), “Balances” (#12,546), “armored” (#12,543). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “atheist” is #12,545. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around atheist (IPA /ˈeɪθiɪst/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #12,545 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for atheist, with forms such as "ahteist", "atehist", and "atheisst". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "Athens", "attest", "atheism", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French athéiste (athée + -iste), from Latin atheos, from Ancient Greek ἄθεος (átheos, “godless, without god”), from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + θεός (theós, “god”). The correct English form is atheist, spelled A-T-H-E-I-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who does not believe in deities or gods.
  2. 2
    A person who does not believe in deities or gods.
  3. 3
    A person who does not believe in deities or gods.
  4. 4
    A person who does not believe in deities or gods.
  5. 5
    A person who does not believe in a particular deity (but may believe in another deity).
  6. 6
    A person who does not believe in any religion (not even a religion without gods); a nonreligious person.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Atheists. One who does not believe in the existence of a Supreme Being, an atheist, is incompetent as a witness, being incapable of being sworn. […] Changed by Acts of 1851, No. 12 (P. S. 1593), under which, no question can be raised as to a witness's "opinions on matters of religious belief."
  2. Ageine, the Atheistes, which say in their hartes there is no God; […]

Etymology

From Middle French athéiste (athée + -iste), from Latin atheos, from Ancient Greek ἄθεος (átheos, “godless, without god”), from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + θεός (theós, “god”).

Synonyms

nontheistatheitardgaytheist

Antonyms

theist

This word in other languages

ateo(Español)athée(Français)Atheist(Deutsch)ateu(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ahteist
  • atehist
  • atheisst
  • atheistt
  • atheits
  • athesit
  • athheist
  • athiest
  • attheist
  • taheist

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ahteist2atehist2atheisst1atheistt1atheits2athesit2athheist1athiest2
Edit distance from "atheist"

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 "atheist"?
"atheist" is spelled A-T-H-E-I-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈeɪθiɪst/.
What does "atheist" mean?
As a noun, "atheist" means: A person who does not believe in deities or gods.
What words are commonly confused with "atheist"?
"atheist" is commonly confused with "Athens", "attest", "atheism". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "atheist"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "atheist" is /ˈeɪθiɪst/. 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 "atheist"?
From Middle French athéiste (athée + -iste), from Latin atheos, from Ancient Greek ἄθεος (átheos, “godless, without god”), from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + θεός (theós, “god”). 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 "atheist", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

armored#12,543aquatic#12,541ambient#12,540bipolar#12,550

Similar misspelling depth

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

caravan10 variantswhisky10 variantsturbine10 variantsstyled10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list