ill repute

noun

"ill-repute" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ill repute” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Bad reputation; notoriety.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ill-repute · ill repute · English

ill repute · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "I" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for ill repute
PropertyValue
Headwordill repute
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “ill repute” in English

ill reputefalls 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.

Rare enough to double-check

ill repute is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for ill repute, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct English form is ill repute, spelled I-L-L- -R-E-P-U-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Bad reputation; notoriety.
  2. 2
    Prostitution and the sex industry.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He was held in ill repute, no one would trust him enough to do business with him.
  2. His list of sexual contacts was quite long, and included ladies from some of the ritzier establishments of ill repute across the border.

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 "ill repute"?
"ill repute" is spelled I-L-L- -R-E-P-U-T-E.
What does "ill repute" mean?
As a noun, "ill repute" means: Bad reputation; notoriety.
What language does "ill repute" come from?
"ill repute" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list