distant
/ˈdɪstənt/
"distant" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“distant” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #5,212. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #5,212
- frequency rank, English
- 3,470
- “D” headwords
- 11
- tracked misspellings
- 9
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Far off (physically, logically or mentally).
Corpus desk
Index EN-distant · distant · English
distant · rank #5,212 · 11 variants · 9 confusables
- FREQ-COMMON #5,212
- LEN-LONG 7 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
- VAR-MID 11 variants
- BOOK-MID 3,470
- PHOTO-FINISH destiny
Nearest frequency peer: destiny (-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.
Frequency neighbourhood for “distant”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- dealer
dealer
94,792 corpus weight
- deemed
deemed
94,791 corpus weight
- destiny
destiny
94,790 corpus weight
- distant
distant
94,789 corpus weight
- electronics
electronics
94,788 corpus weight
- emerging
emerging
94,787 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “distant” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | distant |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈdɪstənt/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #5,212 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 9 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “distant” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 11 spelling variants around distant (IPA /ˈdɪstənt/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #5,212 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for distant, with forms such as "ddistant", "disatnt", and "disstant". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "distort", "distinct", "distract", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English distaunt, from Old French distant, from Latin distāns. The correct English form is distant, spelled D-I-S-T-A-N-T.
Definition
- 1Far off (physically, logically or mentally).
- 2Emotionally unresponsive or unwilling to express genuine feelings.
- 3Imported into a cable television system from a different market (and thus possibly incurring a copyright royalty).
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how distant appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
We heard a distant rumbling but didn't pay any more attention to it. She was surprised to find that her fiancé was a distant relative of hers. His distant look showed that he was not listening to me.
Judge Short had gone to town, and Farrar was off for a three days' cruise up the lake. I was bitterly regretting I had not gone with him when the distant notes of a coach horn reached my ear, and I descried a four-in-hand winding its way up the inn road from the direction of Mohair.
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English distaunt, from Old French distant, from Latin distāns.
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- ddistant
- disatnt
- disstant
- distannt
- distantt
- distatn
- distnat
- disttant
- ditsant
- dsitant
- idstant
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of distant - 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.
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.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "distant"?
What does "distant" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "distant"?
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "distant", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).
Similar misspelling depth
Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).
What to do next
You've looked up "distant". Here's where to go from here.
- "distant" maps to 9 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "distort". View pair
- 11 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
- Usage frequency rank #5,212 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
- Browse more English words in the "D" letter cohort. D–Z browse
- PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.
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.