exposé
/ˌɛkspoʊˈzeɪ/
"expose" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“exposé” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #42,126 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #42,126
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 8
- tracked misspellings
- 13
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The act of exposing somebody or something; a shameful showing up.
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 | exposé |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌɛkspoʊˈzeɪ/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #42,126 |
| Misspellings tracked | 8 |
| Confusable pairs | 13 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “exposé” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for exposé is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌɛkspoʊˈzeɪ/. Corpus data places it at rank #42,126 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for exposé, with forms such as "epxosé", "exopsé", and "expossé". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "exposed", "exposes", "exposure", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: Unadapted borrowing from French exposé. The correct English form is exposé, spelled E-X-P-O-S-É.
Definition
- 1The act of exposing somebody or something; a shameful showing up.
- 2A publication of investigative journalism that reveals hidden and often scandalous truths.
- 3A formal recital or exposition.
Etymology
Unadapted borrowing from French exposé.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: epxosé,exopsé,expossé,expoés,expposé,expsoé,exxposé,xeposé
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of exposé - 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
How do you spell "exposé"?
What does "exposé" mean?
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Using “exposé”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is E-X-P-O-S-É - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌɛkspoʊˈzeɪ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “exposed” - see the side-by-side comparison. exposé vs exposed
- 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.