defiant
/dɪˈfaɪ(j)ənt/
"defiant" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“defiant” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #22,054 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #22,054
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 6
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Defying.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | defiant |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /dɪˈfaɪ(j)ənt/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #22,054 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 6 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “defiant” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for defiant is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /dɪˈfaɪ(j)ənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #22,054 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for defiant, with forms such as "ddefiant", "defaint", and "deffiant". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "define", "deficit", "deviant", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French défiant, from the verb défier. Doublet of diffident. By surface analysis, def(i) + -ant. The correct English form is defiant, spelled D-E-F-I-A-N-T.
Definition
- 1Defying.
- 2Boldly resisting opposition.
Etymology
Borrowed from French défiant, from the verb défier. Doublet of diffident. By surface analysis, def(i) + -ant.
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ddefiant,defaint,deffiant,defiannt,defiantt,defiatn,definat,deifant,dfeiant,edfiant
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of defiant - 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.
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 "defiant"?
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Using “defiant”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-E-F-I-A-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /dɪˈfaɪ(j)ənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “define” - see the side-by-side comparison. defiant vs define
- 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.