latent
/ˈleɪ.tənt/
"latent" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“latent” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #20,407 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #20,407
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 14
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Existing or present but concealed or inactive.
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 | latent |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈleɪ.tənt/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #20,407 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 14 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “latent” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for latent is 6 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈleɪ.tənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #20,407 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for latent, with forms such as "altent", "laetnt", and "latennt". 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 14 confusable-pair relationships, "lent", "later", "Latin", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English latent, latente, from Old French latent, from Latin latēns, present participle of lateō (“lie hidden”). The correct English form is latent, spelled L-A-T-E-N-T.
Definition
- 1Existing or present but concealed or inactive.
- 2Remaining in an inactive or hidden phase; dormant.
- 3Lying dormant or hidden until circumstances are suitable for development or manifestation.
Etymology
From Middle English latent, latente, from Old French latent, from Latin latēns, present participle of lateō (“lie hidden”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: altent,laetnt,latennt,latentt,latetn,latnet,lattent,llatent,ltaent
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of latent - 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.
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 "latent"?
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Using “latent”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is L-A-T-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈleɪ.tənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “lent” - see the side-by-side comparison. latent vs lent
- 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.