featherless biped

/ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd/

//ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd// noun

"featherless-biped" is a 16-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“featherless biped” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A human being.

Key facts for featherless biped
PropertyValue
Headwordfeatherless biped
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd/
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “featherless biped” sits in English frequency

featherless biped falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for featherless biped is 17 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "A human being.".

Zero misspellings are on record for featherless biped in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From the dialogue The Statesman by Plato (427–347 B.C.E.): “λέγω δὴ δεῖν τότε εὐθὺς τὸ πεζὸν τῷ δίποδι πρὸς τὸ τετράπουν γένος διανεῖμαι, κατιδόντα δὲ τἀνθρώπινον ἔτι μόνῳ τῷ πτηνῷ συνειληχὸς τὴν δίποδα ἀγέλην πάλιν τῷ ψιλῷ καὶ τῷ πτεροφυεῖ τέμνειν, […] [I … The correct English form is featherless biped, spelled F-E-A-T-H-E-R-L-E-S-S- -B-I-P-E-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A human being.

Etymology

From the dialogue The Statesman by Plato (427–347 B.C.E.): “λέγω δὴ δεῖν τότε εὐθὺς τὸ πεζὸν τῷ δίποδι πρὸς τὸ τετράπουν γένος διανεῖμαι, κατιδόντα δὲ τἀνθρώπινον ἔτι μόνῳ τῷ πτηνῷ συνειληχὸς τὴν δίποδα ἀγέλην πάλιν τῷ ψιλῷ καὶ τῷ πτεροφυεῖ τέμνειν, […] [I say, then, that we ought at that time to have divided walking animals immediately into biped and quadruped, then seeing that the human race falls into the same division with the feathered creatures and no others, we must again divide the biped class into featherless and feathered, […]]”.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "featherless biped"?
"featherless biped" is spelled F-E-A-T-H-E-R-L-E-S-S- -B-I-P-E-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd/.
What does "featherless biped" mean?
As a noun, "featherless biped" means: A human being.
How do you pronounce "featherless biped"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "featherless biped" is /ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd/. 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 "featherless biped"?
From the dialogue The Statesman by Plato (427–347 B.C.E.): “λέγω δὴ δεῖν τότε εὐθὺς τὸ πεζὸν τῷ δίποδι πρὸς τὸ τετράπουν γένος διανεῖμαι, κατιδόντα δὲ τἀνθρώπινον ἔτι μόνῳ τῷ πτηνῷ συνειληχὸς τὴν δίποδα ἀγέλην πάλιν τῷ ψιλῷ καὶ τῷ πτεροφυεῖ τέμνει... 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.

Using “featherless biped”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is F-E-A-T-H-E-R-L-E-S-S- -B-I-P-E-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˌfɛðələs ˈbaɪpɛd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list