decades

/ˈdɛkeɪdz/

//ˈdɛkeɪdz// noun

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

"decades" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“decades” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,572. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,572
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
12
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - plural of decade.

Corpus desk

Index EN-decades · decades · English

decades · rank #2,572 · 10 variants · 12 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,572
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 12 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH conducted

Nearest frequency peer: conducted (-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 “decades”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “decades” 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).

decades vs decide
71% similar
decades vs decode
71% similar
decades vs decals
71% similar

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

Key facts for decades
PropertyValue
Headworddecades
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈdɛkeɪdz/
Letters7
Frequency rank#2,572
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs12
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “decades”

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).decadeslands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “conducted” (#2,571), “dedicated” (#2,573), “Brazil” (#2,570). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “decades” is #2,572. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around decades (IPA /ˈdɛkeɪdz/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,572 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Dominant gloss: "plural of decade.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for decades, with forms such as "dceades", "ddecades", and "deacdes". 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 12 confusable-pair relationships, "decide", "decode", "decals", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct English form is decades, spelled D-E-C-A-D-E-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    plural of decade.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. For decades American politicians have assumed that mass incarceration works, wooing voters with ever-tougher sentencing laws. The dramatic fall in crime since the 1990s has persuaded many that they were right. Locking up the worst criminals while they are young, fit and dangerous clearly makes America safer. But keeping sad cases[…]incarcerated past pensi…

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • dceades
  • ddecades
  • deacdes
  • decaddes
  • decadess
  • decadse
  • decaeds
  • deccades
  • decdaes
  • edcades

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of decades - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

dceades2ddecades1deacdes2decaddes1decadess1decadse2decaeds2deccades1
Edit distance from "decades"

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 "decades"?
"decades" is spelled D-E-C-A-D-E-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdɛkeɪdz/.
What does "decades" mean?
As a noun, "decades" means: plural of decade.
What words are commonly confused with "decades"?
"decades" is commonly confused with "decide", "decode", "decals". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "decades"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "decades" is /ˈdɛkeɪdz/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "decades" come from?
"decades" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 "decades", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

drawing#2,575warning#2,564typical#2,562Jackson#2,585

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

branch10 variantssinging10 variantsreplace10 variantspacific10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list