emeritus

/ɪˈmɛɹɪtəs/

//ɪˈmɛɹɪtəs// adj

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

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

The verdict

“emeritus” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #20,912. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,912
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
11
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Retired, but retaining an honorific version of a previous title.

Corpus desk

Index EN-emeritus · emeritus · English

emeritus · rank #20,912 · 11 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #20,912
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH emigration

Nearest frequency peer: emigration (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “emeritus”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “emeritus” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for emeritus
PropertyValue
Headwordemeritus
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɪˈmɛɹɪtəs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#20,912
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “emeritus”

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).emerituslands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “emigration” (#20,913), “Eid” (#20,910), “emit” (#20,914). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “emeritus” is #20,912. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around emeritus (IPA /ɪˈmɛɹɪtəs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #20,912 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Retired, but retaining an honorific version of a previous title.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for emeritus, with forms such as "eemritus", "emeirtus", and "emeritsu". 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. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: The adjective is a learned borrowing from Latin ēmeritus (“(having been) earned, (having been) merited; (having been) served, having done one’s service”), the perfect passive participle of ēmereō (“to earn, merit; to gain by service; (military) to complete … The correct English form is emeritus, spelled E-M-E-R-I-T-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Retired, but retaining an honorific version of a previous title.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. emeritus professor professor emeritus professors emeritae
  2. pontiff emeritus

Etymology

The adjective is a learned borrowing from Latin ēmeritus (“(having been) earned, (having been) merited; (having been) served, having done one’s service”), the perfect passive participle of ēmereō (“to earn, merit; to gain by service; (military) to complete one’s obligation to serve, to serve out one’s time”), from ex- (prefix meaning ‘away; out’) + mereō (“to deserve, merit; to acquire, earn, get, obtain; to render service to; to serve”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mer- (“to allot; to assign”)). The noun is derived from the adjective. The plural form emeriti is borrowed from Latin ēmeritī.

This word in other languages

emérito(Español)émérite(Français)emeritiert(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eemritus
  • emeirtus
  • emeritsu
  • emerittus
  • emerituss
  • emeriuts
  • emerritus
  • emertius
  • emmeritus
  • emreitus
  • meeritus

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of emeritus - 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.

eemritus2emeirtus2emeritsu2emerittus1emerituss1emeriuts2emerritus1emertius2
Edit distance from "emeritus"

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 "emeritus"?
"emeritus" is spelled E-M-E-R-I-T-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪˈmɛɹɪtəs/.
What does "emeritus" mean?
As an adjective, "emeritus" means: Retired, but retaining an honorific version of a previous title.
What are common misspellings of "emeritus"?
Common misspellings include "eemritus", "emeirtus", "emeritsu", "emerittus", "emerituss". The correct spelling is "emeritus".
How do you pronounce "emeritus"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "emeritus" is /ɪˈmɛɹɪtəs/. 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 "emeritus"?
The adjective is a learned borrowing from Latin ēmeritus (“(having been) earned, (having been) merited; (having been) served, having done one’s service”), the perfect passive participle of ēmereō (“to earn, merit; to gain by service; (military) to... 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 "emeritus", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

dickhead#20,901fluoride#20,929geologic#20,932giggling#20,933

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Dresden11 variantscrochet11 variantsGillespie11 variantscharmed11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list