flees

/ˈfliːz/

//ˈfliːz// verb

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

"flees" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“flees” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #33,653. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#33,653
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - third-person singular simple present indicative of flee

Corpus desk

Index EN-flees · flees · English

flees · rank #33,653 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #33,653
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH firstborn

Nearest frequency peer: firstborn (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “flees”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “flees” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

flees vs free
60% similar
flees vs flew
60% similar
flees vs flex
60% similar

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

Key facts for flees
PropertyValue
Headwordflees
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈfliːz/
Letters5
Frequency rank#33,653
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “flees”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).fleeslands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “firstborn” (#33,652), “flowery” (#33,654), “Firestone” (#33,651). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “flees” is #33,653. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around flees (IPA /ˈfliːz/), averb. Corpus frequency is #33,653 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Dominant gloss: "third-person singular simple present indicative of flee".

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for flees, with forms such as "fflees", "fleess", and "fles". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "free", "flew", "flex", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct English form is flees, spelled F-L-E-E-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    third-person singular simple present indicative of flee

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • fflees
  • fleess
  • fles
  • flese
  • fllees
  • lfees

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of flees - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

fflees1fleess1fles1flese2fllees1lfees2
Edit distance from "flees"

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 "flees"?
"flees" is spelled F-L-E-E-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfliːz/.
What does "flees" mean?
As a verb, "flees" means: third-person singular simple present indicative of flee
What words are commonly confused with "flees"?
"flees" is commonly confused with "free", "flew", "flex". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "flees"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "flees" is /ˈfliːz/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "flees" come from?
"flees" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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 "flees", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

frock#33,656Finns#33,649Habib#33,669duper#33,629

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

gens6 variantsgyro6 variantsjabs6 variantsdevs6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list