lowlife

/ˈloʊlaɪf/

//ˈloʊlaɪf// adj

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

"lowlife" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“lowlife” is uncommon English (frequency #53,669 among 2,297 “L” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#53,669
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Lacking morality.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lowlife · lowlife · English

lowlife · rank #53,669 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #53,669
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH Longley

Nearest frequency peer: Longley (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “lowlife”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “lowlife” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for lowlife
PropertyValue
Headwordlowlife
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈloʊlaɪf/
Letters7
Frequency rank#53,669
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “lowlife” in English

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

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “Longley” (#53,668), “lollapalooza” (#53,667), “Ludo” (#53,671). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lowlife” is #53,669. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

lowlife is uncommon English at frequency #53,669 among 2,297 “L” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈloʊlaɪf/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for lowlife, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From low + life. The correct English form is lowlife, spelled L-O-W-L-I-F-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Lacking morality.
  2. 2
    Seemingly mischievous and troublesome to society.

Etymology

From low + life.

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 "lowlife"?
"lowlife" is spelled L-O-W-L-I-F-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈloʊlaɪf/.
What does "lowlife" mean?
As an adjective, "lowlife" means: Lacking morality.
How do you pronounce "lowlife"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lowlife" is /ˈloʊlaɪf/. 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 "lowlife"?
From low + life. 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 "lowlife", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Longley#53,668Lefevre#53,656McCrory#53,688Meagher#53,692

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list