complacent
/kəmˈpleɪsənt/
"complacent" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“complacent” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #22,622 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #22,622
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
- 16
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Uncritically satisfied with oneself or one's achievements; smug.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | complacent |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /kəmˈpleɪsənt/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #22,622 |
| Misspellings tracked | 16 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “complacent” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for complacent is 10 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /kəmˈpleɪsənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #22,622 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for complacent, with forms such as "ccomplacent", "cmoplacent", and "comlpacent". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "complaint", "compliment", "complement", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin complacēns (“very pleasing”), present participle of complacēre (“to please at the same time, be very pleasing”), from com- (“together”) + placēre (“to please”); see please and compare complaisant. The correct English form is complacent, spelled C-O-M-P-L-A-C-E-N-T.
Definition
- 1Uncritically satisfied with oneself or one's achievements; smug.
- 2Unduly unworried or apathetic with regard to a need or problem.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin complacēns (“very pleasing”), present participle of complacēre (“to please at the same time, be very pleasing”), from com- (“together”) + placēre (“to please”); see please and compare complaisant.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ccomplacent,cmoplacent,comlpacent,commplacent,compalcent,complaccent,complacennt,complacentt,complacetn,complacnet,complaecnt,complcaent,compllacent,compplacent,copmlacent,ocmplacent
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of complacent - 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 "complacent"?
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Using “complacent”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-O-M-P-L-A-C-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /kəmˈpleɪsənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “complaint” - see the side-by-side comparison. complacent vs complaint
- 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.