complicated
/ˈkɒm.plɪ.keɪ.tɪd/
"complicated" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“complicated” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,156 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #3,156
- frequency rank, English
- 11
- letters
- 17
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Difficult or convoluted.
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 | complicated |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈkɒm.plɪ.keɪ.tɪd/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Frequency rank | #3,156 |
| Misspellings tracked | 17 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “complicated” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for complicated is 11 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkɒm.plɪ.keɪ.tɪd/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,156 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for complicated, with forms such as "ccomplicated", "cmoplicated", and "comlpicated". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "complicate", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct English form is complicated, spelled C-O-M-P-L-I-C-A-T-E-D.
Definition
- 1Difficult or convoluted.
- 2Folded longitudinally (as in the wings of certain insects).
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ccomplicated,cmoplicated,comlpicated,commplicated,compilcated,complciated,compliacted,complicaetd,complicatde,complicatedd,complicatted,compliccated,complictaed,compllicated,compplicated,copmlicated,ocmplicated
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of complicated - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 “complicated”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-O-M-P-L-I-C-A-T-E-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈkɒm.plɪ.keɪ.tɪd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “complicate” - see the side-by-side comparison. complicated vs complicate
- 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.