diatribe
/ˈdaɪ.əˌtɹaɪb/
"diatribe" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“diatribe” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #48,186 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #48,186
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 11
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An abusive, bitter verbal or written attack, criticism or denunciation.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | diatribe |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈdaɪ.əˌtɹaɪb/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #48,186 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “diatribe” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for diatribe is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdaɪ.əˌtɹaɪb/. Corpus data places it at rank #48,186 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 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for diatribe, with forms such as "daitribe", "ddiatribe", and "diartibe". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: First attested 1581, borrowed from French diatribe, from Latin diatriba (“learned discussion or discourse”), from Ancient Greek διατριβή (diatribḗ, “way of spending time, lecture”), from διά (diá, “through”) + τρίβω (tríbō, “I waste, wear out”) The correct English form is diatribe, spelled D-I-A-T-R-I-B-E.
Definition
- 1An abusive, bitter verbal or written attack, criticism or denunciation.
- 2A prolonged discourse; a long-winded speech.
Etymology
First attested 1581, borrowed from French diatribe, from Latin diatriba (“learned discussion or discourse”), from Ancient Greek διατριβή (diatribḗ, “way of spending time, lecture”), from διά (diá, “through”) + τρίβω (tríbō, “I waste, wear out”)
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: daitribe,ddiatribe,diartibe,diatirbe,diatrbie,diatribbe,diatrieb,diatrribe,diattribe,ditaribe,idatribe
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of diatribe - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "diatribe"?
What does "diatribe" mean?
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Using “diatribe”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-I-A-T-R-I-B-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈdaɪ.əˌtɹaɪb/ (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.