descript

adj

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

"descript" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“descript” is uncommon English (frequency #90,358 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#90,358
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Archaic form of described.

Corpus desk

Index EN-descript · descript · English

descript · rank #90,358 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #90,358
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH desiccant

Nearest frequency peer: desiccant (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “descript”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for descript
PropertyValue
Headworddescript
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters8
Frequency rank#90,358
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “descript” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).descriptfalls 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: “desiccant” (#90,359), “Derna” (#90,356), “dickies” (#90,362). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “descript” is #90,358. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

descript is uncommon English at frequency #90,358 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as anadjective. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Archaic form of described.".

Zero misspellings are on record for descript in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin dēscrīptus, past participle of dēscrībō. The correct English form is descript, spelled D-E-S-C-R-I-P-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Archaic form of described.

Etymology

From Latin dēscrīptus, past participle of dēscrībō.

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 "descript"?
"descript" is spelled D-E-S-C-R-I-P-T.
What does "descript" mean?
As an adjective, "descript" means: Archaic form of described.
What is the origin of the word "descript"?
From Latin dēscrīptus, past participle of dēscrībō. 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 "descript", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

digester#90,363Dinsdale#90,366dragster#90,384drivable#90,386

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list