missive
/ˈmɪsɪv/
"missive" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“missive” is an uncommon English word, ranked #61,637 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #61,637
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A written message; a letter, note or memo.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | missive |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈmɪsɪv/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #61,637 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “missive” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for missive is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmɪsɪv/. Corpus data places it at rank #61,637 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for missive, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: 15th century; from Medieval Latin missīvus, from mittō (“to send”). The correct English form is missive, spelled M-I-S-S-I-V-E.
Definition
- 1A written message; a letter, note or memo.
- 2Letters sent between two parties in which one makes an offer and the other accepts it.
- 3One who is sent; a messenger.
Etymology
15th century; from Medieval Latin missīvus, from mittō (“to send”).
This word in other languages
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
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Using “missive”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-I-S-S-I-V-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈmɪsɪv/ (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.