guilt

/ɡɪlt/

//ɡɪlt// noun

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

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

The verdict

“guilt” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #5,796 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#5,796
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Responsibility for wrongdoing.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

guilt vs gut
60% similar
guilt vs gul
60% similar
guilt vs gulf
60% similar

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

Key facts for guilt
PropertyValue
Headwordguilt
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɡɪlt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#5,796
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “guilt” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for guilt is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɡɪlt/. Corpus data places it at rank #5,796 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for guilt, with forms such as "gguilt", "giult", and "guillt". 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, "gut", "gul", "gulf", 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 gilt, gult, from Old English gylt (“guilt, sin, offense, crime, fault”), of obscure origin, but possibly related with Old English ġieldan (“to pay, requite, punish”), whence yield. More specifically it could be connected with Proto-West … The correct English form is guilt, spelled G-U-I-L-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Responsibility for wrongdoing.
  2. 2
    The state of having been found guilty or admitted guilt in legal proceedings.
  3. 3
    Regret for having done wrong.

Etymology

From Middle English gilt, gult, from Old English gylt (“guilt, sin, offense, crime, fault”), of obscure origin, but possibly related with Old English ġieldan (“to pay, requite, punish”), whence yield. More specifically it could be connected with Proto-West Germanic *guldijā, whence Middle Low German gülde, Middle High German gülte (“debt, fee, financial duty”). However, neither the Old English stem form nor the -t (instead of -d) fit the continental form.

Synonyms

blameworthinessculpabilityguiltguiltinessnoninnocenceuninnocence

Antonyms

innocence

This word in other languages

culpa(Español)culpabilité(Français)Schuld(Deutsch)culpa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: gguilt,giult,guillt,guiltt,guitl,gulit,ugilt

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

gguilt1giult2guillt1guiltt1guitl2gulit2ugilt2
Edit distance from "guilt"

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 "guilt"?
"guilt" is spelled G-U-I-L-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ɡɪlt/.
What does "guilt" mean?
As a noun, "guilt" means: Responsibility for wrongdoing.
What words are commonly confused with "guilt"?
"guilt" is commonly confused with "gut", "gul", "gulf". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "guilt"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "guilt" is /ɡɪlt/. 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 "guilt"?
From Middle English gilt, gult, from Old English gylt (“guilt, sin, offense, crime, fault”), of obscure origin, but possibly related with Old English ġieldan (“to pay, requite, punish”), whence yield. More specifically it could be connected with P... 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 “guilt”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is G-U-I-L-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɡɪlt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “gut” - see the side-by-side comparison. guilt vs gut
  • 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