boilerplate
"boilerplate" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“boilerplate” is an uncommon English word, ranked #52,189 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #52,189
- frequency rank, English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A sheet of copper or steel used in the construction of a boiler.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | boilerplate |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 11 |
| Frequency rank | #52,189 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “boilerplate” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for boilerplate is 11 letters long, classified as a noun. Corpus data places it at rank #52,189 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
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
- 1A sheet of copper or steel used in the construction of a boiler.
- 2The rating plate or nameplate required to be affixed to a boiler by the Boiler Explosions Act (1882).
- 3A plate attached to industrial machinery, identifying information such as manufacturer, model number, serial number, and power requirements.
- 4Syndicated material.
- 5Standard text of a legal or official nature added to documents or labels.
- 6A standard piece of program code used routinely and added with a text editor or word processor.
- 7Formulaic or hackneyed language.
- 8Hard, icy snow which may be dangerous for skiing.
Etymology
From boiler + plate. First use appears c. 1793 in the periodical Star.
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
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Using “boilerplate”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-O-I-L-E-R-P-L-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- 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.