chaplain

/ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/

//ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn// noun

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

"chaplain" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“chaplain” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,432. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,432
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A member of a religious body who is (often, although not always, of the clergy) officially assigned to provide pastoral care at an institution, group, private chapel, etc.

Corpus desk

Index EN-chaplain · chaplain · English

chaplain · rank #16,432 · 12 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,432
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH chlorine

Nearest frequency peer: chlorine (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “chaplain”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “chaplain” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

chaplain vs Chapman
63% similar
chaplain vs Chaplin
75% similar
chaplain vs complain
75% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for chaplain
PropertyValue
Headwordchaplain
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/
Letters8
Frequency rank#16,432
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “chaplain”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).chaplainlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “chlorine” (#16,433), “chow” (#16,434), “chubby” (#16,435). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “chaplain” is #16,432. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around chaplain (IPA /ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #16,432 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for chaplain, with forms such as "cahplain", "cchaplain", and "chalpain". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "Chapman", "Chaplin", "complain", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English chapeleyn, from Old French chapelain, from Medieval Latin, Late Latin cappellānus, from cappella. Doublet of capelin. Displaced Old English handprēost. The correct English form is chaplain, spelled C-H-A-P-L-A-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A member of a religious body who is (often, although not always, of the clergy) officially assigned to provide pastoral care at an institution, group, private chapel, etc.
  2. 2
    A person without religious affiliation who carries out similar duties in a secular context.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. The Railway Mission's regionally based chaplains perform the role of impartial 'friend' to anyone working on the railway, regardless of their faith.

Etymology

From Middle English chapeleyn, from Old French chapelain, from Medieval Latin, Late Latin cappellānus, from cappella. Doublet of capelin. Displaced Old English handprēost.

This word in other languages

capellán(Español)aumônier(Français)Kaplan(Deutsch)capelão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cahplain
  • cchaplain
  • chalpain
  • chapalin
  • chaplainn
  • chaplani
  • chaplian
  • chapllain
  • chapplain
  • chhaplain
  • chpalain
  • hcaplain

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of chaplain - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

cahplain2cchaplain1chalpain2chapalin2chaplainn1chaplani2chaplian2chapllain1
Edit distance from "chaplain"

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 "chaplain"?
"chaplain" is spelled C-H-A-P-L-A-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/.
What does "chaplain" mean?
As a noun, "chaplain" means: A member of a religious body who is (often, although not always, of the clergy) officially assigned to provide pastoral care at an institution, group, private chapel, etc.
What words are commonly confused with "chaplain"?
"chaplain" is commonly confused with "Chapman", "Chaplin", "complain". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "chaplain"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chaplain" is /ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/. 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 "chaplain"?
From Middle English chapeleyn, from Old French chapelain, from Medieval Latin, Late Latin cappellānus, from cappella. Doublet of capelin. Displaced Old English handprēost. 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 "chaplain", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

chlorine#16,433Caldwell#16,427discreet#16,453autistic#16,410

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

collusion12 variantsAtlantis12 variantsGarfield12 variantswidening12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list