besides
/bɪˈsaɪdz/
"besides" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“besides” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,328 in English word frequency and used as a preposition.
- #2,328
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In addition to.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | besides |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Preposition |
| IPA | /bɪˈsaɪdz/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #2,328 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “besides” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for besides is 7 letters long, classified as a preposition, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /bɪˈsaɪdz/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,328 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for besides, with forms such as "bbesides", "beisdes", and "besdies". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "brides", "beside", "bedside", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English bisides (also bisiden), extension of biside, equivalent to beside + -s (adverbial suffix). The correct English form is besides, spelled B-E-S-I-D-E-S.
Definition
- 1In addition to.
- 2Other than; except for; instead of.
- 3Beside, next to.
Etymology
From Middle English bisides (also bisiden), extension of biside, equivalent to beside + -s (adverbial suffix).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: bbesides,beisdes,besdies,besiddes,besidess,besidse,besieds,bessides,bseides,ebsides
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of besides - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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
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Using “besides”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-E-S-I-D-E-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /bɪˈsaɪdz/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “brides” - see the side-by-side comparison. besides vs brides
- 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.