baste

/beɪst/

//beɪst// verb

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

"baste" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“baste” is uncommon English (frequency #59,881 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,881
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To sew with long or loose stitches, as for temporary use, or in preparation for gathering the fabric.

Corpus desk

Index EN-baste · baste · English

baste · rank #59,881 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #59,881
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH basher

Nearest frequency peer: basher (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “baste”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “baste” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for baste
PropertyValue
Headwordbaste
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/beɪst/
Letters5
Frequency rank#59,881
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “baste” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).bastefalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “basher” (#59,880), “Batangas” (#59,883), “Bandra” (#59,878). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “baste” is #59,881. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

baste is uncommon English at frequency #59,881 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /beɪst/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To sew with long or loose stitches, as for temporary use, or in preparation for gathering the fabric.".

No misspelling variants are generated for baste in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Late Middle English, from Old French bastir (“build, construct, sew up (a garment)”). The correct English form is baste, spelled B-A-S-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To sew with long or loose stitches, as for temporary use, or in preparation for gathering the fabric.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. He bastes the coat together with thick white thread almost like string, using stitches big enough to be ripped out easily later.

Etymology

Late Middle English, from Old French bastir (“build, construct, sew up (a garment)”).

This word in other languages

hilvanar(Español)bâtir(Français)heften(Deutsch)

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 "baste"?
"baste" is spelled B-A-S-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /beɪst/.
What does "baste" mean?
As a verb, "baste" means: To sew with long or loose stitches, as for temporary use, or in preparation for gathering the fabric.
How do you pronounce "baste"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "baste" is /beɪst/. 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 "baste"?
Late Middle English, from Old French bastir (“build, construct, sew up (a garment)”). 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 "baste", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Bakar#59,875beget#59,888areal#59,867aphid#59,862

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list