decant

/dəˈkænt/

//dəˈkænt// verb

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

"decant" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“decant” is uncommon English (frequency #74,883 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#74,883
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To pour off (a liquid) gently, so as not to disturb the sediment.

Corpus desk

Index EN-decant · decant · English

decant · rank #74,883 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #74,883
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH DBMS

Nearest frequency peer: DBMS (-2 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.

Long-tail ranks near “decant”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “decant” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for decant
PropertyValue
Headworddecant
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dəˈkænt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#74,883
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “decant” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).decantfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “DBMS” (#74,881), “dein” (#74,887), “Daughtry” (#74,877). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “decant” is #74,883. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

decant is uncommon English at frequency #74,883 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /dəˈkænt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for decant, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French décanter, from Medieval Latin dēcanthāre, from dē- + canthus (“beak of a cup or jug”). The correct English form is decant, spelled D-E-C-A-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To pour off (a liquid) gently, so as not to disturb the sediment.
  2. 2
    To pour from one vessel into another.
  3. 3
    To flow.
  4. 4
    To remove (a clone or other artificially-gestated baby) from its chamber, vat, or artificial womb.
  5. 5
    To rehouse people while their buildings are being refurbished or rebuilt.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. After washing, the insoluble lime soap is decomposed with hot dilute sulphuric acid. The melted fatty acids thus rise as an oil to the surface, when they are decanted.
  2. to decant wine

Etymology

From French décanter, from Medieval Latin dēcanthāre, from dē- + canthus (“beak of a cup or jug”).

This word in other languages

decantar(Español)décanter(Français)dekantieren(Deutsch)

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 "decant"?
"decant" is spelled D-E-C-A-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /dəˈkænt/.
What does "decant" mean?
As a verb, "decant" means: To pour off (a liquid) gently, so as not to disturb the sediment.
How do you pronounce "decant"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "decant" is /dəˈkænt/. 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 "decant"?
From French décanter, from Medieval Latin dēcanthāre, from dē- + canthus (“beak of a cup or jug”). 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 "decant", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

depute#74,892dalles#74,873cuatro#74,865Corgan#74,847

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list