bestial

/ˈbɛs.ti.əl/

//ˈbɛs.ti.əl// adj

"bestial" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bestial” is uncommon English (frequency #59,894 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,894
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Beast-like.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bestial · bestial · English

bestial · rank #59,894 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #59,894
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH betwixt

Nearest frequency peer: betwixt (+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 “bestial”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bestial
PropertyValue
Headwordbestial
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈbɛs.ti.əl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#59,894
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “bestial” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).bestialfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “betwixt” (#59,895), “bentonite” (#59,892), “Benazir” (#59,891). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bestial” is #59,894. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

bestial is uncommon English at frequency #59,894 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈbɛs.ti.əl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Beast-like.".

Zero misspellings are on record for bestial in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English bestial, from Old French bestial, from Late Latin bēstiālis, from Latin bēstia (“beast”) (whence English beast). The correct English form is bestial, spelled B-E-S-T-I-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Beast-like.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Reputation, reputation, reputation! O, I have lost my reputation! I have lost the immortal part of myself, and what remains is bestial.
  2. By thee adulterous lust was driven from men / Among the bestial herds to range […]

Etymology

From Middle English bestial, from Old French bestial, from Late Latin bēstiālis, from Latin bēstia (“beast”) (whence English beast).

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bestial"?
"bestial" is spelled B-E-S-T-I-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɛs.ti.əl/.
What does "bestial" mean?
As an adjective, "bestial" means: Beast-like.
How do you pronounce "bestial"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bestial" is /ˈbɛs.ti.əl/. 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 "bestial"?
From Middle English bestial, from Old French bestial, from Late Latin bēstiālis, from Latin bēstia (“beast”) (whence English beast). 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 "bestial", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list