nominate

/ˈnɒm.ɪ.neɪt/

//ˈnɒm.ɪ.neɪt// verb

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

"nominate" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“nominate” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,569. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,569
frequency rank, English
1,534
“N” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To name someone as a candidate for a particular role or position, including that of an office.

Corpus desk

Index EN-nominate · nominate · English

nominate · rank #13,569 · 11 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,569
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,534
  • PHOTO-FINISH Neville

Nearest frequency peer: Neville (-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 “nominate”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “nominate” 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).

nominate vs nominee
75% similar
nominate vs nominated
89% similar
nominate vs nominative
80% similar

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

Key facts for nominate
PropertyValue
Headwordnominate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈnɒm.ɪ.neɪt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#13,569
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “nominate”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).nominatelands 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 “Neville” (#13,568), “NP” (#13,570), “mummy” (#13,567). Among 1,534 “N” headwords, “nominate” is #13,569. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around nominate (IPA /ˈnɒm.ɪ.neɪt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #13,569 among 1,534 “N” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for nominate, with forms such as "nmoinate", "nnominate", and "noimnate". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "nominee", "nominated", "nominative", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *h₁nómn̥ The adjective is first attested in 1450, in Middle English, the verb in 1545; partly from Middle English nominat(e) (“named, designated”), from Latin nōminātus, perfect passive participle of nōminō (“to name”) (see -ate (etymology 1, 2 an… The correct English form is nominate, spelled N-O-M-I-N-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To name someone as a candidate for a particular role or position, including that of an office.
  2. 2
    To specify in advance which pocket a ball will be potted in; to call; to name.
  3. 3
    To designate a peer (or oneself) as corresponding to a (potentially positive or negative) description.
  4. 4
    To entitle, confer a name upon.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. In the unlimited method, they are allowed to nominate as many or as few peers as they see fit for each question.
  2. 1658: the City of Norwich … was enlarged, builded and nominated by the Saxons. — Sir Thomas Browne, Urne-Burial (Penguin 2005, p. 12)

Etymology

PIE word *h₁nómn̥ The adjective is first attested in 1450, in Middle English, the verb in 1545; partly from Middle English nominat(e) (“named, designated”), from Latin nōminātus, perfect passive participle of nōminō (“to name”) (see -ate (etymology 1, 2 and 3)), from nōmen (“a name”). Participial usage of the adjective up until Early Modern English.

Synonyms

benamedenominatenamespecify

This word in other languages

postular(Español)nommer(Français)nominieren(Deutsch)nomear(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • nmoinate
  • nnominate
  • noimnate
  • nomiante
  • nominaet
  • nominatte
  • nominnate
  • nomintae
  • nomminate
  • nomniate
  • onminate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

nmoinate2nnominate1noimnate2nomiante2nominaet2nominatte1nominnate1nomintae2
Edit distance from "nominate"

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 "nominate"?
"nominate" is spelled N-O-M-I-N-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈnɒm.ɪ.neɪt/.
What does "nominate" mean?
As a verb, "nominate" means: To name someone as a candidate for a particular role or position, including that of an office.
What words are commonly confused with "nominate"?
"nominate" is commonly confused with "nominee", "nominated", "nominative". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "nominate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nominate" is /ˈnɒm.ɪ.neɪt/. 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 "nominate"?
PIE word *h₁nómn̥ The adjective is first attested in 1450, in Middle English, the verb in 1545; partly from Middle English nominat(e) (“named, designated”), from Latin nōminātus, perfect passive participle of nōminō (“to name”) (see -ate (etymolo... 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 "nominate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

outraged#13,575overdose#13,576Mariners#13,560majestic#13,559

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

orchard11 variantsmastery11 variantsJamaican11 variantssecrecy11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list