democracy

/dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si/

//dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si// noun

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

"democracy" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“democracy” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,941 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#2,941
frequency rank, English
9
letters
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Rule by the people, especially as a form of government; either directly or through elected representatives (representative democracy).

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

democracy vs democrat
78% similar

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

Key facts for democracy
PropertyValue
Headworddemocracy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si/
Letters9
Frequency rank#2,941
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “democracy” 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). democracy lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for democracy is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,941 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for democracy, with forms such as "ddemocracy", "demcoracy", and "demmocracy". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "democrat", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French democratie (French démocratie), from Medieval Latin dēmocratia, from Ancient Greek δημοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (dēmokrătĭ́ā). By surface analysis, demo- (“people”) + -cracy (“rule”). The correct English form is democracy, spelled D-E-M-O-C-R-A-C-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Rule by the people, especially as a form of government; either directly or through elected representatives (representative democracy).
  2. 2
    A government under the direct or representative rule of the people of its jurisdiction.
  3. 3
    A state with a democratic system of government.
  4. 4
    Belief in political freedom and equality; the "spirit of democracy".

Etymology

From Middle French democratie (French démocratie), from Medieval Latin dēmocratia, from Ancient Greek δημοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (dēmokrătĭ́ā). By surface analysis, demo- (“people”) + -cracy (“rule”).

Synonyms

democratism

This word in other languages

democracia(Español)démocratie(Français)Demokratie(Deutsch)democracia(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ddemocracy,demcoracy,demmocracy,democarcy,democcracy,democraccy,democracyy,democrayc,democrcay,democrracy,demorcacy,deomcracy,dmeocracy,edmocracy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ddemocracy1demcoracy2demmocracy1democarcy2democcracy1democraccy1democracyy1democrayc2
Edit distance from "democracy"

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 "democracy"?
"democracy" is spelled D-E-M-O-C-R-A-C-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si/.
What does "democracy" mean?
As a noun, "democracy" means: Rule by the people, especially as a form of government; either directly or through elected representatives (representative democracy).
What words are commonly confused with "democracy"?
"democracy" is commonly confused with "democrat". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "democracy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "democracy" is /dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si/. 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 "democracy"?
From Middle French democratie (French démocratie), from Medieval Latin dēmocratia, from Ancient Greek δημοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (dēmokrătĭ́ā). By surface analysis, demo- (“people”) + -cracy (“rule”). 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.

Using “democracy”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is D-E-M-O-C-R-A-C-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /dɪˈmɒk.ɹə.si/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “democrat” - see the side-by-side comparison. democracy vs democrat
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list