discourteous

/dɪsˈkɜːtɪəs/

//dɪsˈkɜːtɪəs// adj

"discourteous" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“discourteous” is uncommon English (frequency #83,190 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#83,190
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Impolite; lacking consideration for others.

Corpus desk

Index EN-discourteous · discourteous · English

discourteous · rank #83,190 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #83,190
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH discotheque

Nearest frequency peer: discotheque (-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 “discourteous”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for discourteous
PropertyValue
Headworddiscourteous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/dɪsˈkɜːtɪəs/
Letters12
Frequency rank#83,190
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “discourteous” 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).discourteousfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “discotheque” (#83,189), “dither” (#83,191), “doff” (#83,192). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “discourteous” is #83,190. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

discourteous is uncommon English at frequency #83,190 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /dɪsˈkɜːtɪəs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Impolite; lacking consideration for others.".

No misspelling variants are generated for discourteous in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From dis- + courteous. The correct English form is discourteous, spelled D-I-S-C-O-U-R-T-E-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Impolite; lacking consideration for others.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Kirk, who succeeded Drumright, had an unusually short tour of duty in Taipei—only about a year. Despite the shortness of his duty, he left the impression of being an old sea captain who would have felt more at home barking his orders from the bridge than heading an important diplomatic mission. There was nothing civil or gentle about him, and even in talk…

Etymology

From dis- + courteous.

Antonyms

This word in other languages

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 "discourteous"?
"discourteous" is spelled D-I-S-C-O-U-R-T-E-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪsˈkɜːtɪəs/.
What does "discourteous" mean?
As an adjective, "discourteous" means: Impolite; lacking consideration for others.
How do you pronounce "discourteous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "discourteous" is /dɪsˈkɜːtɪəs/. 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 "discourteous"?
From dis- + courteous. 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 "discourteous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list