distil

/dɪˈstɪl/

//dɪˈstɪl// verb

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

"distil" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“distil” is uncommon English (frequency #90,371 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#90,371
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To exude (a liquid) in small drops; also, to give off (a vapour) which condenses in small drops.

Corpus desk

Index EN-distil · distil · English

distil · rank #90,371 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #90,371
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH dishonorably

Nearest frequency peer: dishonorably (-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 “distil”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for distil
PropertyValue
Headworddistil
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɪˈstɪl/
Letters6
Frequency rank#90,371
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “distil” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).distilfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “dishonorably” (#90,370), “distrusting” (#90,372), “Diyala” (#90,374). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “distil” is #90,371. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

distil is uncommon English at frequency #90,371 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /dɪˈstɪl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 13 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for distil, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *de From Late Middle English distillen (“to fall, flow, or shed in drops, drop, trickle; to shed drops; to fill (the eyes) with tears; (alchemy, medicine) to subject (something) to distillation; to obtain (something) using distillation; to distil;… The correct English form is distil, spelled D-I-S-T-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    To exude (a liquid) in small drops; also, to give off (a vapour) which condenses in small drops.
  2. 2
    To impart (information, etc.) in small quantities; to infuse.
  3. 3
    To heat (a substance, usually a liquid) so that a vapour is produced, and then to cool the vapour so that it condenses back into a liquid, either to purify the original substance or to obtain one of its components; to subject to distillation.
  4. 4
    Followed by off or out: to expel (a volatile substance) from something by distillation.
  5. 5
    To extract the essence of (something) by, or as if by, distillation; to concentrate, to purify.
  6. 6
    To transform a thing (into something else) by distillation.
  7. 7
    To make (something, especially spirits such as gin and whisky) by distillation.
  8. 8
    To transform a complex large language model into a smaller one.
  9. 9
    To dissolve or melt (something).
  10. 10
    To fall or trickle down in small drops; to exude, to ooze out; also, to come out as a vapour which condenses in small drops.
  11. 11
    To flow or pass gently or slowly; hence (figuratively) to be manifested gently or gradually.
  12. 12
    To drip or be wet with some liquid.
  13. 13
    To turn into a vapour and then condense back into a liquid; to undergo or be produced by distillation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Firs distil resin.
  2. [I]t [Silene] eaſeth the head-ach, if togither with oile of roſes it be diſtilled upon the head by way of embrochation.

Etymology

PIE word *de From Late Middle English distillen (“to fall, flow, or shed in drops, drop, trickle; to shed drops; to fill (the eyes) with tears; (alchemy, medicine) to subject (something) to distillation; to obtain (something) using distillation; to distil; to condense or vaporize; (figuratively) to give (good fortune) to; to say (slanderous words)”) [and other forms], from Old French distiller (modern French distiller (“to distil”)), and from its etymon Latin distīllāre, a variant of Latin dēstīllāre, the present active infinitive of dēstīllō (“to drip or trickle down; to distil”), from dē- (prefix meaning ‘down, down from, down to’) + stīllō (“to drip, drop, trickle; to distil”) (from stīlla (“drop of liquid; (figuratively) small quantity”), probably a diminutive of stīria (“ice drop; icicle”)). Cognates * French distiller (“to distil”) * Italian distillare (“to distil”) * Occitan distillar * Portuguese destilar (“to distil; to drip”) * Spanish destilar (“to distil; to exude; to filter”)

This word in other languages

destilar(Español)distiller(Français)destillieren(Deutsch)destilar(Português)

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 "distil"?
"distil" is spelled D-I-S-T-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈstɪl/.
What does "distil" mean?
As a verb, "distil" means: To exude (a liquid) in small drops; also, to give off (a vapour) which condenses in small drops.
How do you pronounce "distil"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "distil" is /dɪˈstɪl/. 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 "distil"?
PIE word *de From Late Middle English distillen (“to fall, flow, or shed in drops, drop, trickle; to shed drops; to fill (the eyes) with tears; (alchemy, medicine) to subject (something) to distillation; to obtain (something) using distillation; ... 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 "distil", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Diyala#90,374Doheny#90,376Eartha#90,395darter#90,337

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list