dead

/dɛd/

//dɛd// adj

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

"dead" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dead” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #652 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#652
frequency rank, English
4
letters
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - No longer living; deceased. (Also used as a noun.)

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

dead vs did
50% similar
dead vs DNA
0% similar
dead vs del
50% similar

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

Key facts for dead
PropertyValue
Headworddead
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/dɛd/
Letters4
Frequency rank#652
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “dead” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). dead lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for dead is 4 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /dɛd/. Corpus data places it at rank #652 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 30 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for dead, with forms such as "daed", "ddead", and "deadd". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "did", "DNA", "del", 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 ded, deed, from Old English dēad, from Proto-West Germanic *daud, from Proto-Germanic *daudaz. Compare West Frisian dead, dea, Dutch dood, German tot, Danish, Norwegian død, Norwegian Nynorsk daud. The correct English form is dead, spelled D-E-A-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    No longer living; deceased. (Also used as a noun.)
  2. 2
    Devoid of living things; barren.
  3. 3
    Figuratively, not alive; lacking life.
  4. 4
    Utterly exhausted.
  5. 5
    So hated or offensive as to be absolutely shunned, ignored, or ostracized.
  6. 6
    Doomed; marked for death; as good as dead.
  7. 7
    Without emotion; impassive.
  8. 8
    Stationary; static; immobile or immovable.
  9. 9
    Without interest to one of the senses; dull; flat.
  10. 10
    Unproductive; fallow.
  11. 11
    Past, bygone, vanished.
  12. 12
    Lacking usual activity; unexpectedly quiet or empty of people.
  13. 13
    Completely inactive; currently without power; without a signal; not live.
  14. 14
    Unable to emit power, being discharged (flat) or faulty.
  15. 15
    Broken or inoperable.
  16. 16
    No longer used or required.
  17. 17
    Intentionally designed so as not to impart motion or power.
  18. 18
    Not in play.
  19. 19
    Lying so near the hole that the player is certain to hole it in the next stroke.
  20. 20
    Tagged out.
  21. 21
    Full and complete (usually applied to nouns involving lack of motion, sound, activity, or other signs of life).
  22. 22
    Exact; on the dot.
  23. 23
    Experiencing pins and needles (paresthesia).
  24. 24
    Expresses an emotional reaction associated with hyperbolic senses of die:
  25. 25
    Expresses an emotional reaction associated with hyperbolic senses of die:
  26. 26
    Constructed so as not to reflect or transmit sound; soundless; anechoic.
  27. 27
    Bringing death; deadly.
  28. 28
    Cut off from the rights of a citizen; deprived of the power of enjoying the rights of property.
  29. 29
    Indifferent to; having no obligation toward; no longer subject to or ruled by (sin, guilt, pleasure, etc).
  30. 30
    Of a syllable in languages such as Thai and Burmese: ending abruptly.

Etymology

From Middle English ded, deed, from Old English dēad, from Proto-West Germanic *daud, from Proto-Germanic *daudaz. Compare West Frisian dead, dea, Dutch dood, German tot, Danish, Norwegian død, Norwegian Nynorsk daud.

Synonyms

asleepat restblessedcadaverousclay-colddeceasedrestingdecomposeddefunctdepartedexpiredextinctfeygonegoodinanimateinertkaputlatelifelessliving impairedlowno longer with usno moreperishedreposingsix feet deepsix feet understiffunalivewastedwhilomwith God

Antonyms

aliveliveliving

This word in other languages

muerto(Español)mort(Français)tot(Deutsch)morto(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: daed,ddead,deadd,deda,edad

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

daed2ddead1deadd1deda2edad2
Edit distance from "dead"

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 "dead"?
"dead" is spelled D-E-A-D. The IPA pronunciation is /dɛd/.
What does "dead" mean?
As an adjective, "dead" means: No longer living; deceased. (Also used as a noun.)
What words are commonly confused with "dead"?
"dead" is commonly confused with "did", "DNA", "del". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dead"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dead" is /dɛd/. 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 "dead"?
From Middle English ded, deed, from Old English dēad, from Proto-West Germanic *daud, from Proto-Germanic *daudaz. Compare West Frisian dead, dea, Dutch dood, German tot, Danish, Norwegian død, Norwegian Nynorsk daud. 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.

Using “dead”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is D-E-A-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /dɛd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “did” - see the side-by-side comparison. dead vs did
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list