backstabber
/ˈbækˌstæbɚ/
"backstabber" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“backstabber” is uncommon English (frequency #94,554 among 31,241 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #94,554
- frequency rank, English
- 31,241
- “B” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A traitor or hypocrite, such as a co-worker or friend assumed trustworthy but who figuratively attacks when one's back is turned.
Corpus desk
Index EN-backstabber · backstabber · English
backstabber · rank #94,554 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #94,554
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 31,241
- PHOTO-FINISH bacchanal
Nearest frequency peer: bacchanal (-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.
Frequency neighbourhood for “backstabber”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- Ayling
Ayling
5,453 corpus weight
- Azizi
Azizi
5,452 corpus weight
- bacchanal
bacchanal
5,448 corpus weight
- backstabber
backstabber
5,447 corpus weight
- Baldur
Baldur
5,443 corpus weight
- ballsack
ballsack
5,441 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “backstabber” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | backstabber |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈbækˌstæbɚ/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Frequency rank | #94,554 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “backstabber” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
backstabber is uncommon English at frequency #94,554 among 31,241 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbækˌstæbɚ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A traitor or hypocrite, such as a co-worker or friend assumed trustworthy but who figuratively attacks when one's back is turned.".
backstabber doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From back + stabber. The correct English form is backstabber, spelled B-A-C-K-S-T-A-B-B-E-R.
Definition
- 1A traitor or hypocrite, such as a co-worker or friend assumed trustworthy but who figuratively attacks when one's back is turned.
Etymology
From back + stabber.
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 "backstabber", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 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.