deem

/diːm/

//diːm// verb

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

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

The verdict

“deem” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #18,536) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#18,536
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - To hold in belief or estimation; to adjudge as a conclusion; to regard as being; to evaluate according to one's beliefs; to account.

Corpus desk

Index EN-deem · deem · English

deem · rank #18,536 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,536
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH deceptive

Nearest frequency peer: deceptive (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “deem”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “deem” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 2, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

deem vs DM
0% similar
deem vs due
50% similar
deem vs die
50% similar

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

Key facts for deem
PropertyValue
Headworddeem
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/diːm/
Letters4
Frequency rank#18,536
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “deem” 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). deem lands here:

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

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

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for deem is neighbouring look-alikes ("DM", "due", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /diːm/. Frequency #18,536 among 3,470 “D” headwords. 5 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for deem, with forms such as "ddeem", "deemm", and "deme". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "DM", "due", "die", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English dēmen (“to judge; to criticize, condemn; to impose a penalty on, sentence; to direct, order; to believe, think, deem”), from Old English dēman (“to decide, decree, deem”), from Proto-West Germanic *dōmijan, from Proto-Germanic *dōmijaną … The correct English form is deem, spelled D-E-E-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    To hold in belief or estimation; to adjudge as a conclusion; to regard as being; to evaluate according to one's beliefs; to account.
  2. 2
    To think, judge, or have or hold as an opinion; to decide or believe on consideration; to suppose.
  3. 3
    To judge, to pass judgment on; to doom, to sentence.
  4. 4
    To adjudge, to decree.
  5. 5
    To dispense (justice); to administer (law).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She deemed his efforts insufficient.
  2. To this sect belong also the Skakounui, or Jumpers. […] They refuse to take an oath, and will not bear arms, deeming it sinful to shed human blood.

Etymology

From Middle English dēmen (“to judge; to criticize, condemn; to impose a penalty on, sentence; to direct, order; to believe, think, deem”), from Old English dēman (“to decide, decree, deem”), from Proto-West Germanic *dōmijan, from Proto-Germanic *dōmijaną (“to judge, think”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- (“to set, put”). The word is cognate with Danish and Norwegian Bokmål dømme (“to judge”), Dutch doemen (“to condemn, foredoom”), North Frisian dema (“to judge, recognise”), Norwegian Nynorsk døma (“to judge”), Swedish döma (“to judge, sentence, condemn”), Finnish tuomita (“to judge”). It is also related to doom.

Synonyms

accountappraisecountesteemseecensureconsiderdeemholddubfindinterpretjudgelook uponregard asrespectthink ofview as

This word in other languages

considerar(Español)estimer(Français)halten(Deutsch)considerar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddeem
  • deemm
  • deme
  • edem

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ddeem1deemm1deme2edem2
Edit distance from "deem"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "deem"?
"deem" is spelled D-E-E-M. The IPA pronunciation is /diːm/.
What does "deem" mean?
As a verb, "deem" means: To hold in belief or estimation; to adjudge as a conclusion; to regard as being; to evaluate according to one's beliefs; to account.
What words are commonly confused with "deem"?
"deem" is commonly confused with "DM", "due", "die". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "deem"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "deem" is /diːm/. 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 "deem"?
From Middle English dēmen (“to judge; to criticize, condemn; to impose a penalty on, sentence; to direct, order; to believe, think, deem”), from Old English dēman (“to decide, decree, deem”), from Proto-West Germanic *dōmijan, from Proto-Germanic ... 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 "deem", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

elon#18,551Chun#18,517fang#18,559bard#18,490
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