countermand
/ˌkaʊntəˈmɑːnd/
"countermand" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“countermand” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To revoke (a former command); to cancel or rescind by giving an order contrary to one previously given.
Corpus desk
Index EN-countermand · countermand · English
countermand · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "C" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | countermand |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˌkaʊntəˈmɑːnd/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “countermand” in English
Rare enough to double-check
countermand is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /ˌkaʊntəˈmɑːnd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.
No generated misspelling entries exist for countermand in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French contremander, from Medieval Latin contramandō, from contra + mandō (“I order; I command”). The correct English form is countermand, spelled C-O-U-N-T-E-R-M-A-N-D.
Definition
- 1To revoke (a former command); to cancel or rescind by giving an order contrary to one previously given.
- 2To recall a person or unit with such an order.
- 3To cancel an order for (some specified goods).
- 4To counteract, to act against, to frustrate.
- 5To prohibit (a course of action or behavior).
- 6To oppose or revoke the command of (someone).
- 7To maintain control of, to keep under command.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how countermand appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Near-synonym: counteract
to countermand an order for goods
Etymology
From Old French contremander, from Medieval Latin contramandō, from contra + mandō (“I order; I command”).
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.