deign

/deɪn/

//deɪn// verb

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

"deign" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“deign” is uncommon English (frequency #69,781 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#69,781
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To consider it appropriate or worthy to do or give (something), often when it is seen as beneath one's dignity; to condescend, to vouchsafe.

Corpus desk

Index EN-deign · deign · English

deign · rank #69,781 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #69,781
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH dentate

Nearest frequency peer: dentate (+3 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 “deign”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for deign
PropertyValue
Headworddeign
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/deɪn/
Letters5
Frequency rank#69,781
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “deign” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).deignfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “dentate” (#69,784), “Danziger” (#69,776), “Dalston” (#69,775). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “deign” is #69,781. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

deign is uncommon English at frequency #69,781 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /deɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for deign, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English deinen, deynen (“to consider (something) suitable to one’s dignity or worth, condescend; to appear worthy; to condescend to grant (something), permit, vouchsafe; to regard (someone) as worthy; to consecrate, dedicate (something)”), from … The correct English form is deign, spelled D-E-I-G-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To consider it appropriate or worthy to do or give (something), often when it is seen as beneath one's dignity; to condescend, to vouchsafe.
  2. 2
    To consider it appropriate or worthy to accept or take (something).
  3. 3
    Often followed by of: to consider (someone) as worthy of something; to dignify.
  4. 4
    To consider it appropriate or worthy to do something, often when it is seen as beneath one's dignity; to condescend, to think fit, to vouchsafe.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Nor vvould vve deigne him buriall of his men, / Till he diſburſed, at Saint Colmes ynch, / Ten thouſand Dollars, to our generall vſe.
  2. [T]hough this my vvorke, ovvne not vvorth enough to deſerve your patronage, yet ſuch is your benigne humanity, that I am confident you vvill daigne it your protection, under vvhich it vvillingly ſhrovvdes it ſelfe.

Etymology

From Middle English deinen, deynen (“to consider (something) suitable to one’s dignity or worth, condescend; to appear worthy; to condescend to grant (something), permit, vouchsafe; to regard (someone) as worthy; to consecrate, dedicate (something)”), from Old French daigner, degnier, deigner, deignier (“to condescend, deign”) (modern French daigner), from Latin dignāre, the present active infinitive of dignō (“to deem fitting, suitable, or worthy; to condescend, deign”), from dignus (“fitting, suitable, worthy; worthy of”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *deḱ- (“to perceive; to take”)) + -ō (suffix forming first-conjugation verbs). cognates * Italian degnare * Occitan deinar, denhar

This word in other languages

dignarse(Español)daigner(Français)

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 "deign"?
"deign" is spelled D-E-I-G-N. The IPA pronunciation is /deɪn/.
What does "deign" mean?
As a verb, "deign" means: To consider it appropriate or worthy to do or give (something), often when it is seen as beneath one's dignity; to condescend, to vouchsafe.
How do you pronounce "deign"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "deign" is /deɪn/. 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 "deign"?
From Middle English deinen, deynen (“to consider (something) suitable to one’s dignity or worth, condescend; to appear worthy; to condescend to grant (something), permit, vouchsafe; to regard (someone) as worthy; to consecrate, dedicate (something... 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 "deign", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

crema#69,765doula#69,800Eadie#69,806Ekman#69,814

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list