impede
/ɪmˈpiːd/
"impede" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“impede” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #24,197 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #24,197
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 8
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To get in the way of; to hinder.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | impede |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ɪmˈpiːd/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #24,197 |
| Misspellings tracked | 8 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “impede” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for impede is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪmˈpiːd/. Corpus data places it at rank #24,197 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "To get in the way of; to hinder.".
Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for impede, with forms such as "imepde", "immpede", and "impdee". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "impose", "impure", "implode", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin impediō (“to shackle”), from pēs (“foot”) (compare pedestrian). First attested use as a verb was in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, see quotations. The correct English form is impede, spelled I-M-P-E-D-E.
Definition
- 1To get in the way of; to hinder.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin impediō (“to shackle”), from pēs (“foot”) (compare pedestrian). First attested use as a verb was in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, see quotations.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: imepde,immpede,impdee,impedde,impeed,imppede,ipmede,mipede
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of impede - 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.
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 "impede"?
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Using “impede”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is I-M-P-E-D-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪmˈpiːd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “impose” - see the side-by-side comparison. impede vs impose
- 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.