defecate
/ˈdɛfɪkeɪt/
"defecate" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“defecate” is an uncommon English word, ranked #59,330 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #59,330
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To excrete feces from one's bowels.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | defecate |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˈdɛfɪkeɪt/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #59,330 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “defecate” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for defecate is 8 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdɛfɪkeɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #59,330 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
defecate doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin dēfaecātus, the perfect passive participle of dēfaecō, see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix). See also faeces; cognate with French déféquer. The correct English form is defecate, spelled D-E-F-E-C-A-T-E.
Definition
- 1To excrete feces from one's bowels.
- 2To pass (something) as excrement; to purge.
- 3To clean (something) of dregs, impurities, etc.; to purify.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin dēfaecātus, the perfect passive participle of dēfaecō, see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix). See also faeces; cognate with French déféquer.
Synonyms
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); 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
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Using “defecate”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-E-F-E-C-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈdɛfɪkeɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.