fugitive

/ˈfjuːd͡ʒɪtɪv/

//ˈfjuːd͡ʒɪtɪv// noun

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

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

The verdict

“fugitive” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #14,125. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#14,125
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
11
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who flees or escapes and travels secretly from place to place, and sometimes using disguises and aliases to conceal their identity, as to avoid law authorities in order to avoid an arrest ...

Corpus desk

Index EN-fugitive · fugitive · English

fugitive · rank #14,125 · 11 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #14,125
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH GPA

Nearest frequency peer: GPA (+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 “fugitive”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “fugitive” 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
Key facts for fugitive
PropertyValue
Headwordfugitive
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈfjuːd͡ʒɪtɪv/
Letters8
Frequency rank#14,125
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “fugitive”

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).fugitivelands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “GPA” (#14,126), “flair” (#14,123), “Greenwich” (#14,127). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “fugitive” is #14,125. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around fugitive (IPA /ˈfjuːd͡ʒɪtɪv/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #14,125 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A person who flees or escapes and travels secretly from place to place, and sometimes using disguises and aliases to conceal their identity, as to avoid law authorities in order to avoid an arrest ...".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for fugitive, with forms such as "ffugitive", "fguitive", and "fuggitive". 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 is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fugitive, fugityve, fugityf, fugitife, fugytif, fugitif, from Latin fugitīvus. The correct English form is fugitive, spelled F-U-G-I-T-I-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who flees or escapes and travels secretly from place to place, and sometimes using disguises and aliases to conceal their identity, as to avoid law authorities in order to avoid an arrest or prosecution, or to avoid some other unwanted situation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. “I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle, brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera,[…]the speed-mad fugitives from the furies of ennui, the neurotic victims of mental cirrhosis, the jewelled animals whose moral code is the code of the barnyard—!”

Etymology

From Middle English fugitive, fugityve, fugityf, fugitife, fugytif, fugitif, from Latin fugitīvus.

Synonyms

abscotchalaternomadwandererrunaway

This word in other languages

fugitivo(Español)fugitif(Français)Flüchtling(Deutsch)fugitivo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ffugitive
  • fguitive
  • fuggitive
  • fugiitve
  • fugitiev
  • fugitivve
  • fugittive
  • fugitvie
  • fugtiive
  • fuigtive
  • ufgitive

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of fugitive - 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.

ffugitive1fguitive2fuggitive1fugiitve2fugitiev2fugitivve1fugittive1fugitvie2
Edit distance from "fugitive"

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 "fugitive"?
"fugitive" is spelled F-U-G-I-T-I-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfjuːd͡ʒɪtɪv/.
What does "fugitive" mean?
As a noun, "fugitive" means: A person who flees or escapes and travels secretly from place to place, and sometimes using disguises and aliases to conceal their identity, as to avoid law authorities in order to avoid an arrest ...
What are common misspellings of "fugitive"?
Common misspellings include "ffugitive", "fguitive", "fuggitive", "fugiitve", "fugitiev". The correct spelling is "fugitive".
How do you pronounce "fugitive"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fugitive" is /ˈfjuːd͡ʒɪtɪv/. 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 "fugitive"?
From Middle English fugitive, fugityve, fugityf, fugitife, fugytif, fugitif, from Latin fugitīvus. 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 "fugitive", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

energies#14,116downside#14,110downfall#14,109deferred#14,103

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

hurdles11 variantscatcher11 variantsmitigate11 variantsBabylon11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list