empower
/ɪmˈpaʊə(ɹ)/
"empower" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“empower” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #14,750 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #14,750
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To give permission, power, or the legal right to do something.
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 | empower |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ɪmˈpaʊə(ɹ)/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #14,750 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “empower” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for empower is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪmˈpaʊə(ɹ)/. Corpus data places it at rank #14,750 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 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for empower, with forms such as "emmpower", "emopwer", and "empoewr". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "empowered", "employer", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From em- + power. The correct English form is empower, spelled E-M-P-O-W-E-R.
Definition
- 1To give permission, power, or the legal right to do something.
- 2To give someone more confidence and/or strength to do something, often by enabling them to increase their control over their own life or situation.
Etymology
From em- + power.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: emmpower,emopwer,empoewr,empowerr,empowre,empowwer,emppower,empwoer,epmower,mepower
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of empower - 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “empower”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is E-M-P-O-W-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪmˈpaʊə(ɹ)/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “empowered” - see the side-by-side comparison. empower vs empowered
- 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.