flee

/fliː/

//fliː// verb

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

"flee" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“flee” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #9,469) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#9,469
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To run away; to escape.

Corpus desk

Index EN-flee · flee · English

flee · rank #9,469 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,469
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH Forbes

Nearest frequency peer: Forbes (+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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “flee”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “flee” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

flee vs fly
50% similar
flee vs flu
50% similar
flee vs foe
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for flee
PropertyValue
Headwordflee
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/fliː/
Letters4
Frequency rank#9,469
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “flee” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).fleelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Forbes” (#9,470), “exhaust” (#9,467), “forwards” (#9,471). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for flee is neighbouring look-alikes ("fly", "flu", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /fliː/. Frequency #9,469 among 2,507 “F” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for flee, with forms such as "fflee", "fle", and "fllee". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "fly", "flu", "foe", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English flen, from Old English flēon, from Proto-West Germanic *fleuhan, from Proto-Germanic *fleuhaną, from Proto-Indo-European *plewk-, *plew- (“to fly, flow, run”). Cognate with Dutch vlieden, German fliehen, Icelandic flýja, Swedish fly, Got… The correct English form is flee, spelled F-L-E-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To run away; to escape.
  2. 2
    To escape from.
  3. 3
    To disappear quickly; to vanish; to fleet.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The prisoner tried to flee, but was caught by the guards.
  2. The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bolde as a lyon.

Etymology

From Middle English flen, from Old English flēon, from Proto-West Germanic *fleuhan, from Proto-Germanic *fleuhaną, from Proto-Indo-European *plewk-, *plew- (“to fly, flow, run”). Cognate with Dutch vlieden, German fliehen, Icelandic flýja, Swedish fly, Gothic 𐌸𐌻𐌹𐌿𐌷𐌰𐌽 (þliuhan). Within English, related to fly and more distantly to flow.

Synonyms

abscondabsquatulateamscraybeat a retreatbeat itbeat feetblow this popsicle standboltbook itdine and dashdo a bunkdo a flitdo a moonlight flitdo a runnerfleefly the coopjumpgas and dashget lostget outgnashhead for the hillshightailhightail ithit the roadkick rocksleg itmake a break for itmake a run for itmake tracksnamouspeg itrabbitrun a milerun awayrun for the hillsrun offscamperscatscarpershemozzlescramskedaddlesmash and dashtake a powdertake flighttake offtake to one's heelstake to the hillstear offturn tailvamoose

This word in other languages

huir(Español)s'enfuir(Français)fliehen(Deutsch)escapar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • fflee
  • fle
  • fllee
  • lfee

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of flee - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

fflee1fle1fllee1lfee2
Edit distance from "flee"

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 "flee"?
"flee" is spelled F-L-E-E. The IPA pronunciation is /fliː/.
What does "flee" mean?
As a verb, "flee" means: To run away; to escape.
What words are commonly confused with "flee"?
"flee" is commonly confused with "fly", "flu", "foe". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "flee"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "flee" is /fliː/. 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 "flee"?
From Middle English flen, from Old English flēon, from Proto-West Germanic *fleuhan, from Proto-Germanic *fleuhaną, from Proto-Indo-European *plewk-, *plew- (“to fly, flow, run”). Cognate with Dutch vlieden, German fliehen, Icelandic flýja, Swedis... 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 "flee", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

hawk#9,477doom#9,459Jill#9,489logs#9,493

What to do next

You've looked up "flee". Here's where to go from here.

  • "flee" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "fly". View pair
  • 4 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #9,469 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "F" letter cohort. F–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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