melt

/mɛlt/

//mɛlt// verb

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

"melt" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“melt” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,582. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,582
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To change (or to be changed) from a solid state to a liquid state, usually by a gradual heat.

Corpus desk

Index EN-melt · melt · English

melt · rank #7,582 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,582
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH maritime

Nearest frequency peer: maritime (-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 “melt”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “melt” 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).

melt vs MT
0% similar
melt vs ML
0% similar
melt vs men
50% similar

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

Key facts for melt
PropertyValue
Headwordmelt
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/mɛlt/
Letters4
Frequency rank#7,582
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “melt”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).meltlands 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 “maritime” (#7,581), “marble” (#7,580), “Monica” (#7,584). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “melt” is #7,582. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around melt (IPA /mɛlt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #7,582 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for melt, with forms such as "emlt", "mellt", and "meltt". 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. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "MT", "ML", "men", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English melten, from a merger of Old English meltan (intransitive) and mieltan (transitive), both meaning “to melt, digest,” from Proto-West Germanic *meltan and *maltijan, from Proto-Germanic *meltaną and *maltijaną, both from Proto-Indo-Europe… The correct English form is melt, spelled M-E-L-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To change (or to be changed) from a solid state to a liquid state, usually by a gradual heat.
  2. 2
    To dissolve, disperse, vanish.
  3. 3
    To soften, as by a warming or kindly influence; to relax; to render gentle or susceptible to mild influences; sometimes, in a bad sense, to take away the firmness of; to weaken.
  4. 4
    To be discouraged.
  5. 5
    To be emotionally softened or touched.
  6. 6
    To be very hot and sweat profusely.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I melted butter to make a cake.
  2. When the weather is warm, the snowman will disappear; he will melt.

Etymology

From Middle English melten, from a merger of Old English meltan (intransitive) and mieltan (transitive), both meaning “to melt, digest,” from Proto-West Germanic *meltan and *maltijan, from Proto-Germanic *meltaną and *maltijaną, both from Proto-Indo-European *(s)meld- (“melt”). Cognate with Icelandic melta (“to digest”).

Synonyms

to foundto thaw

This word in other languages

derretirse(Español)fondre(Français)schmelzen(Deutsch)derreter(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • emlt
  • mellt
  • meltt
  • metl
  • mlet
  • mmelt

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

emlt2mellt1meltt1metl2mlet2mmelt1
Edit distance from "melt"

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 "melt"?
"melt" is spelled M-E-L-T. The IPA pronunciation is /mɛlt/.
What does "melt" mean?
As a verb, "melt" means: To change (or to be changed) from a solid state to a liquid state, usually by a gradual heat.
What words are commonly confused with "melt"?
"melt" is commonly confused with "MT", "ML", "men". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "melt"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "melt" is /mɛlt/. 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 "melt"?
From Middle English melten, from a merger of Old English meltan (intransitive) and mieltan (transitive), both meaning “to melt, digest,” from Proto-West Germanic *meltan and *maltijan, from Proto-Germanic *meltaną and *maltijaną, both from Proto-I... 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 "melt", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

oath#7,587eyed#7,562Sara#7,605dame#7,551

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

Katie6 variantsstir6 variantscurry6 variantstrek6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list