complaint

/kəmˈpleɪnt/

//kəmˈpleɪnt// noun

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

"complaint" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“complaint” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,145. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,145
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of complaining.

Corpus desk

Index EN-complaint · complaint · English

complaint · rank #4,145 · 13 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,145
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH communist

Nearest frequency peer: communist (-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 “complaint”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “complaint” 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).

complaint vs compliant
78% similar
complaint vs complying
78% similar
complaint vs complaints
90% similar

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

Key facts for complaint
PropertyValue
Headwordcomplaint
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kəmˈpleɪnt/
Letters9
Frequency rank#4,145
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “complaint”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).complaintlands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “communist” (#4,144), “component” (#4,146), “centuries” (#4,143). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “complaint” is #4,145. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around complaint (IPA /kəmˈpleɪnt/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #4,145 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for complaint, with forms such as "ccomplaint", "cmoplaint", and "comlpaint". 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, "compliant", "complying", "complaints", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English compleynte, from Anglo-Norman compleint, from Old French compleindre, eventually from Latin planctus (whence plaint). The correct English form is complaint, spelled C-O-M-P-L-A-I-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of complaining.
  2. 2
    A grievance, problem, difficulty, or concern.
  3. 3
    In a civil action, the first pleading of the plaintiff setting out the facts on which the claim is based.
  4. 4
    In criminal law, the preliminary charge or accusation made by one person against another to the appropriate court or officer, usually a magistrate.
  5. 5
    A bodily disorder or disease; the symptom of such a disorder.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. customer complaints
  2. noise complaints

Etymology

From Middle English compleynte, from Anglo-Norman compleint, from Old French compleindre, eventually from Latin planctus (whence plaint).

Synonyms

criminal complaintcomplaint of an offenceoffensechargechargescriminal informationinform the policeauthoritiesnotification of the policereport an offenceoffense to the police

This word in other languages

queja(Español)plainte(Français)Klage(Deutsch)queixa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccomplaint
  • cmoplaint
  • comlpaint
  • commplaint
  • compalint
  • complainnt
  • complaintt
  • complaitn
  • complanit
  • compllaint
  • compplaint
  • copmlaint
  • ocmplaint

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ccomplaint1cmoplaint2comlpaint2commplaint1compalint2complainnt1complaintt1complaitn2
Edit distance from "complaint"

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 "complaint"?
"complaint" is spelled C-O-M-P-L-A-I-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /kəmˈpleɪnt/.
What does "complaint" mean?
As a noun, "complaint" means: The act of complaining.
What words are commonly confused with "complaint"?
"complaint" is commonly confused with "compliant", "complying", "complaints". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "complaint"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "complaint" is /kəmˈpleɪnt/. 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 "complaint"?
From Middle English compleynte, from Anglo-Norman compleint, from Old French compleindre, eventually from Latin planctus (whence plaint). 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 "complaint", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

communist#4,144component#4,146centuries#4,143desperate#4,151

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

innovation13 variantsrequested13 variantssufficient13 variantsLawrence13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list