literature

/ˈlɪt.(ə.)ɹə.t͡ʃə(ɹ)/

//ˈlɪt.(ə.)ɹə.t͡ʃə(ɹ)// noun

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

"literature" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“literature” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,395. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,395
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The body of all written works.

Corpus desk

Index EN-literature · literature · English

literature · rank #2,395 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,395
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH kingdom

Nearest frequency peer: kingdom (-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 “literature”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “literature” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

literature vs literate
80% similar

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

Key facts for literature
PropertyValue
Headwordliterature
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈlɪt.(ə.)ɹə.t͡ʃə(ɹ)/
Letters10
Frequency rank#2,395
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “literature”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).literaturelands 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 “kingdom” (#2,394), “mayor” (#2,396), “Jim” (#2,393). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “literature” is #2,395. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around literature (IPA /ˈlɪt.(ə.)ɹə.t͡ʃə(ɹ)/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,395 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for literature, with forms such as "ilterature", "lietrature", and "litearture". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "literate", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English literature, from Old French littérature, from Latin literatura or litteratura, from littera (“letter”), from Etruscan, from Ancient Greek διφθέρᾱ (diphthérā, “tablet”). Displaced native Old English bōccræft. The correct English form is literature, spelled L-I-T-E-R-A-T-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The body of all written works.
  2. 2
    The collected creative writing of a nation, people, group, or culture.
  3. 3
    All the papers, treatises, etc. published in academic journals on a particular subject.
  4. 4
    Written fiction of a high standard.
  5. 5
    Literacy; ability to read and write.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He’s studying English literature at university.
  2. There’s a vast body of scientific literature on the subject.

Etymology

From Middle English literature, from Old French littérature, from Latin literatura or litteratura, from littera (“letter”), from Etruscan, from Ancient Greek διφθέρᾱ (diphthérā, “tablet”). Displaced native Old English bōccræft.

Synonyms

literature

This word in other languages

literatura(Español)littérature(Français)Literatur(Deutsch)literatura(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ilterature
  • lietrature
  • litearture
  • literatrue
  • literatture
  • literatuer
  • literaturre
  • literautre
  • literrature
  • litertaure
  • litreature
  • litterature
  • lliterature
  • ltierature

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of literature - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ilterature2lietrature2litearture2literatrue2literatture1literatuer2literaturre1literautre2
Edit distance from "literature"

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 "literature"?
"literature" is spelled L-I-T-E-R-A-T-U-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈlɪt.(ə.)ɹə.t͡ʃə(ɹ)/.
What does "literature" mean?
As a noun, "literature" means: The body of all written works.
What words are commonly confused with "literature"?
"literature" is commonly confused with "literate". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "literature"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "literature" is /ˈlɪt.(ə.)ɹə.t͡ʃə(ɹ)/. 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 "literature"?
From Middle English literature, from Old French littérature, from Latin literatura or litteratura, from littera (“letter”), from Etruscan, from Ancient Greek διφθέρᾱ (diphthérā, “tablet”). Displaced native Old English bōccræft. 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 "literature", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

incredible#2,351identified#2,349determined#2,289statistics#2,503

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

selection14 variantsbreakfast14 variantsdestroyed14 variantsresidents14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list