combative
/ˈkɒm.bə.tɪv/
"combative" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“combative” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #33,583 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #33,583
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
- 13
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Given to fighting; disposed to engage in combat; pugnacious.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | combative |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈkɒm.bə.tɪv/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #33,583 |
| Misspellings tracked | 13 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “combative” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for combative is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkɒm.bə.tɪv/. Corpus data places it at rank #33,583 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Given to fighting; disposed to engage in combat; pugnacious.".
Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for combative, with forms such as "ccombative", "cmobative", and "cobmative". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From combat + -ive. The correct English form is combative, spelled C-O-M-B-A-T-I-V-E.
Definition
- 1Given to fighting; disposed to engage in combat; pugnacious.
Etymology
From combat + -ive.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ccombative,cmobative,cobmative,comabtive,combaitve,combatiev,combativve,combattive,combatvie,combbative,combtaive,commbative,ocmbative
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of combative - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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 "combative"?
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Using “combative”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-O-M-B-A-T-I-V-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈkɒm.bə.tɪv/ (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.