boilerplate

noun

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

"boilerplate" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“boilerplate” is uncommon English (frequency #52,189 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#52,189
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A sheet of copper or steel used in the construction of a boiler.

Corpus desk

Index EN-boilerplate · boilerplate · English

boilerplate · rank #52,189 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #52,189
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH bodhisattva

Nearest frequency peer: bodhisattva (-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 “boilerplate”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for boilerplate
PropertyValue
Headwordboilerplate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters11
Frequency rank#52,189
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “boilerplate” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).boilerplatefalls 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: “bodhisattva” (#52,188), “breakneck” (#52,191), “BMA” (#52,186). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “boilerplate” is #52,189. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

boilerplate is uncommon English at frequency #52,189 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 8 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for boilerplate, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From boiler + plate. First use appears c. 1793 in the periodical Star. The correct English form is boilerplate, spelled B-O-I-L-E-R-P-L-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A sheet of copper or steel used in the construction of a boiler.
  2. 2
    The rating plate or nameplate required to be affixed to a boiler by the Boiler Explosions Act (1882).
  3. 3
    A plate attached to industrial machinery, identifying information such as manufacturer, model number, serial number, and power requirements.
  4. 4
    Syndicated material.
  5. 5
    Standard text of a legal or official nature added to documents or labels.
  6. 6
    A standard piece of program code used routinely and added with a text editor or word processor.
  7. 7
    Formulaic or hackneyed language.
  8. 8
    Hard, icy snow which may be dangerous for skiing.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. […] they have neither the responsibility nor the inclination to cover the real news of the community and consequently have little editorial expense, relying on handouts and cheap boilerplate materials to fill up the spots where they have no ads.
  2. They put that boilerplate on all the warning labels.

Etymology

From boiler + plate. First use appears c. 1793 in the periodical Star.

This word in other languages

Kennzeichnung(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 "boilerplate"?
"boilerplate" is spelled B-O-I-L-E-R-P-L-A-T-E.
What does "boilerplate" mean?
As a noun, "boilerplate" means: A sheet of copper or steel used in the construction of a boiler.
What is the origin of the word "boilerplate"?
From boiler + plate. First use appears c. 1793 in the periodical Star. 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 "boilerplate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

bodhisattva#52,188attentively#52,160commutative#52,230angiography#52,145

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list