backless
/ˈbækləs/
"backless" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“backless” is uncommon English (frequency #58,530 among 31,241 “B” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #58,530
- frequency rank, English
- 31,241
- “B” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Having no back, especially where one would be expected, as with a chair or a dress.
Corpus desk
Index EN-backless · backless · English
backless · rank #58,530 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #58,530
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 31,241
- PHOTO-FINISH aza
Nearest frequency peer: aza (-2 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.
Frequency neighbourhood for “backless”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- awl
awl
41,476 corpus weight
- axillary
axillary
41,475 corpus weight
- aza
aza
41,473 corpus weight
- backless
backless
41,471 corpus weight
- Ballinger
Ballinger
41,468 corpus weight
- balustrade
balustrade
41,467 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “backless” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | backless |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈbækləs/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #58,530 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “backless” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
backless is uncommon English at frequency #58,530 among 31,241 “B” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈbækləs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for backless, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: From back + -less. The correct English form is backless, spelled B-A-C-K-L-E-S-S.
Definition
- 1Having no back, especially where one would be expected, as with a chair or a dress.
- 2Having the back uncovered, showing the skin.
Etymology
From back + -less.
This word in other languages
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.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "backless", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).
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.