bad apple
"bad-apple" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“bad apple” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A person who is not wholesome, honest, or trustworthy, especially one who has an adverse influence on others.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | bad apple |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “bad apple” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for bad apple is 9 letters long, classified as a noun. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "A person who is not wholesome, honest, or trustworthy, especially one who has an adverse influence on others.".
bad apple has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: From the proverb “one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch” (or a variant thereof). The correct English form is bad apple, spelled B-A-D- -A-P-P-L-E.
Definition
- 1A person who is not wholesome, honest, or trustworthy, especially one who has an adverse influence on others.
Etymology
From the proverb “one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch” (or a variant thereof).
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “bad apple”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-A-D- -A-P-P-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- 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.