maleficent
/məˈlɛf.ɪ.sənt/
"maleficent" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“maleficent” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #38,955 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #38,955
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
- 15
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Harmful or evil in intent or effect.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | maleficent |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /məˈlɛf.ɪ.sənt/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #38,955 |
| Misspellings tracked | 15 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “maleficent” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for maleficent is 10 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /məˈlɛf.ɪ.sənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #38,955 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Harmful or evil in intent or effect.".
Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for maleficent, with forms such as "amleficent", "maelficent", and "malefcient". 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. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Latin *maleficēns, from male (“bad”) + -ficēns, combining form from faciēns, present participle of faciō (“to make or do”). The correct English form is maleficent, spelled M-A-L-E-F-I-C-E-N-T.
Definition
- 1Harmful or evil in intent or effect.
Etymology
Latin *maleficēns, from male (“bad”) + -ficēns, combining form from faciēns, present participle of faciō (“to make or do”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: amleficent,maelficent,malefcient,malefficent,maleficcent,maleficennt,maleficentt,maleficetn,maleficnet,malefiecnt,maleifcent,malfeicent,malleficent,mlaeficent,mmaleficent
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of maleficent - 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 "maleficent"?
What does "maleficent" mean?
What are common misspellings of "maleficent"?
How do you pronounce "maleficent"?
What is the origin of the word "maleficent"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “maleficent”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-L-E-F-I-C-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /məˈlɛf.ɪ.sənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.