compress

/kəmˈpɹɛs/

//kəmˈpɹɛs// verb

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

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

The verdict

“compress” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,377. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,377
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To make smaller; to press or squeeze together, or to make something occupy a smaller space or volume.

Corpus desk

Index EN-compress · compress · English

compress · rank #26,377 · 11 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,377
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH competitively

Nearest frequency peer: competitively (-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 “compress”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “compress” 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).

compress vs cypress
75% similar
compress vs congress
75% similar
compress vs comprise
75% similar

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

Key facts for compress
PropertyValue
Headwordcompress
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/kəmˈpɹɛs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#26,377
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “compress”

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).compresslands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “competitively” (#26,376), “comptroller” (#26,378), “commendable” (#26,375). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “compress” is #26,377. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around compress (IPA /kəmˈpɹɛs/), averb. Corpus frequency is #26,377 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for compress, with forms such as "ccompress", "cmopress", and "commpress". 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. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "cypress", "congress", "comprise", 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 compressen, from Old French compresser, from Late Latin compressare (“to press hard/together”), from Latin compressus, the past participle of comprimō (“to compress”), itself from com- (“together”) + premō (“press”). The correct English form is compress, spelled C-O-M-P-R-E-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    To make smaller; to press or squeeze together, or to make something occupy a smaller space or volume.
  2. 2
    To be pressed together or folded by compression into a more economic, easier format.
  3. 3
    To condense into a more economic, easier format.
  4. 4
    To abridge.
  5. 5
    To make digital information smaller by encoding it using fewer bits.
  6. 6
    To make a pulse or particle bunch shorter by applying dispersion to it.
  7. 7
    To embrace sexually.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The force required to compress a spring varies linearly with the displacement.
  2. events of centuries […] compressed within the compass of a single life

Etymology

From Middle English compressen, from Old French compresser, from Late Latin compressare (“to press hard/together”), from Latin compressus, the past participle of comprimō (“to compress”), itself from com- (“together”) + premō (“press”).

Synonyms

astringecompactcompactifycondensedensitizepackpressmashscrunchsmushsquooshsquashsquishsqueezethringthrutch

Antonyms

decompactdecompactifydecompressexpanduncompressdensen

This word in other languages

comprimirse(Español)comprimer(Français)komprimieren(Deutsch)comprimir(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccompress
  • cmopress
  • commpress
  • comperss
  • comppress
  • compres
  • comprress
  • comprses
  • comrpess
  • copmress
  • ocmpress

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of compress - 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.

ccompress1cmopress2commpress1comperss2comppress1compres1comprress1comprses2
Edit distance from "compress"

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 "compress"?
"compress" is spelled C-O-M-P-R-E-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /kəmˈpɹɛs/.
What does "compress" mean?
As a verb, "compress" means: To make smaller; to press or squeeze together, or to make something occupy a smaller space or volume.
What words are commonly confused with "compress"?
"compress" is commonly confused with "cypress", "congress", "comprise". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "compress"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "compress" is /kəmˈpɹɛs/. 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 "compress"?
From Middle English compressen, from Old French compresser, from Late Latin compressare (“to press hard/together”), from Latin compressus, the past participle of comprimō (“to compress”), itself from com- (“together”) + premō (“press”). 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 "compress", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Catalina#26,364dilution#26,400ejection#26,406foothold#26,426

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

cellulose11 variantscasserole11 variantsAshland11 variantsflexing11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list