blackguard
/ˈblæɡəd/
"blackguard" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“blackguard” is an uncommon English word, ranked #91,296 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #91,296
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The lowest servant in a household charged with pots, pans, and other kitchen equipment.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | blackguard |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈblæɡəd/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #91,296 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “blackguard” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for blackguard is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈblæɡəd/. Corpus data places it at rank #91,296 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No generated misspelling entries exist for blackguard in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. 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 black + guard, thought to have referred originally to the scullions and lower menials of a court, or of a nobleman's household, who wore black liveries or blacked shoes and boots, or were often stained with soot. The correct English form is blackguard, spelled B-L-A-C-K-G-U-A-R-D.
Definition
- 1The lowest servant in a household charged with pots, pans, and other kitchen equipment.
- 2An unprincipled, contemptible person; an untrustworthy person.
- 3A man who uses foul language in front of a woman (typically a woman of high standing).
Etymology
From black + guard, thought to have referred originally to the scullions and lower menials of a court, or of a nobleman's household, who wore black liveries or blacked shoes and boots, or were often stained with soot.
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 “blackguard”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-L-A-C-K-G-U-A-R-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈblæɡəd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.