escapade

/ˈɛskəˌpeɪd/

//ˈɛskəˌpeɪd// noun

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

The verdict

“escapade” is uncommon English (frequency #51,689 among 2,246 “E” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#51,689
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A daring or adventurous act; an undertaking which goes against convention.

Corpus desk

Index EN-escapade · escapade · English

escapade · rank #51,689 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #51,689
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH ert

Nearest frequency peer: ert (-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 “escapade”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for escapade
PropertyValue
Headwordescapade
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛskəˌpeɪd/
Letters8
Frequency rank#51,689
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “escapade” 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).escapadefalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “ert” (#51,688), “Essie” (#51,690), “EPR” (#51,687). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “escapade” is #51,689. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

escapade is uncommon English at frequency #51,689 among 2,246 “E” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɛskəˌpeɪd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A daring or adventurous act; an undertaking which goes against convention.".

escapade has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French escapade (“the act of escaping; a trick”), itself borrowed from Old Spanish escapada, from escapar (“to escape”), from Vulgar Latin *excappāre. The correct English form is escapade, spelled E-S-C-A-P-A-D-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A daring or adventurous act; an undertaking which goes against convention.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The Manner of living among the Portugueze here is, with the utmost Frugality and Temperance. […] The beſt of them (excepting the Governor now and then) neither pay nor receive any Viſits of Eſcapade or Recreation; […]
  2. [Nobody] stood more confounded than Oldbuck at this sudden escapade of his nephew. "Is the devil in him," was his first exclamation, "to go to disturb the brute?"

Etymology

Borrowed from French escapade (“the act of escaping; a trick”), itself borrowed from Old Spanish escapada, from escapar (“to escape”), from Vulgar Latin *excappāre.

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 "escapade"?
"escapade" is spelled E-S-C-A-P-A-D-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛskəˌpeɪd/.
What does "escapade" mean?
As a noun, "escapade" means: A daring or adventurous act; an undertaking which goes against convention.
How do you pronounce "escapade"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "escapade" is /ˈɛskəˌpeɪd/. 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 "escapade"?
Borrowed from French escapade (“the act of escaping; a trick”), itself borrowed from Old Spanish escapada, from escapar (“to escape”), from Vulgar Latin *excappāre. 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 "escapade", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list