malaise

/məˈleɪz/

//məˈleɪz// noun

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

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

The verdict

“malaise” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #35,398. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#35,398
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A feeling of general bodily discomfort, fatigue or unpleasantness, often at the onset of illness.

Corpus desk

Index EN-malaise · malaise · English

malaise · rank #35,398 · 9 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #35,398
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH Malacca

Nearest frequency peer: Malacca (-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 “malaise”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “malaise” 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).

malaise vs malice
71% similar
malaise vs Malays
57% similar
malaise vs marais
71% similar

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

Key facts for malaise
PropertyValue
Headwordmalaise
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/məˈleɪz/
Letters7
Frequency rank#35,398
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “malaise”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).malaiselands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Malacca” (#35,397), “Malvern” (#35,400), “machined” (#35,395). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “malaise” is #35,398. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around malaise (IPA /məˈleɪz/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #35,398 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for malaise, with forms such as "amlaise", "maalise", and "malaies". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "malice", "Malays", "marais", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French malaise (“ill ease”), from mal- (“bad, badly”) + aise (“ease”). Compare ill at ease. The correct English form is malaise, spelled M-A-L-A-I-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A feeling of general bodily discomfort, fatigue or unpleasantness, often at the onset of illness.
  2. 2
    An ambiguous feeling of mental or moral depression.
  3. 3
    Ill will or hurtful feelings for others or someone.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Addressing tech malaise has become a trend with authors and self-help coaches – such as Catherine Price, author of How to Break Up With Your Phone, who, during a $295, 50-minute phone call, will offer you advice on things like how to create roadblocks to checking your phone by putting a rubber band around your screen, and “think of the bigger picture” rat…
  2. Volkswagen’s travails are symbolic of the nation’s overall economic malaise and a political crisis that collapsed the government in December, paving the way for early elections Feb. 23.

Etymology

From French malaise (“ill ease”), from mal- (“bad, badly”) + aise (“ease”). Compare ill at ease.

This word in other languages

malestar(Español)malaise(Français)Unbehagen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amlaise
  • maalise
  • malaies
  • malaisse
  • malasie
  • maliase
  • mallaise
  • mlaaise
  • mmalaise

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of malaise - 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.

amlaise2maalise2malaies2malaisse1malasie2maliase2mallaise1mlaaise2
Edit distance from "malaise"

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 "malaise"?
"malaise" is spelled M-A-L-A-I-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /məˈleɪz/.
What does "malaise" mean?
As a noun, "malaise" means: A feeling of general bodily discomfort, fatigue or unpleasantness, often at the onset of illness.
What words are commonly confused with "malaise"?
"malaise" is commonly confused with "malice", "Malays", "marais". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "malaise"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "malaise" is /məˈleɪz/. 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 "malaise"?
From French malaise (“ill ease”), from mal- (“bad, badly”) + aise (“ease”). Compare ill at ease. 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 "malaise", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Malacca#35,397Malvern#35,400merrily#35,409Leyland#35,384

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

McNair9 variantslapping9 variantsKrista9 variantsKrakow9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list