# missile

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈmɪs.aɪl/ · frequency rank #5,712

## Definitions
1. Any object used as a weapon by being thrown or fired through the air, such as stone, arrow or bullet.
2. A self-propelled projectile whose trajectory can be adjusted after it is launched.

## Etymology
From Latin missile (“thrown weapon, projectile”), neuter of missilis (“throwable, capable of being thrown”), from mittere (“to send”). From 1611. Compare Middle French missile (“projectile”), from 1636.

## Easily confused with
- **missing** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/missile-vs-missing)
- **mission** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/missile-vs-mission)
- **Massie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/massie-vs-missile)
- **massive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/massive-vs-missile)

## Common misspellings (8)
`imssile`, `misile`, `misisle`, `missiel`, `missille`, `misslie`, `mmissile`, `msisile`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/missile