obedient

/əˈbiːdɪənt/

//əˈbiːdɪənt// adj

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

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

The verdict

“obedient” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #22,754. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#22,754
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Willing to comply with the commands, orders, or instructions of those in authority; biddable.

Corpus desk

Index EN-obedient · obedient · English

obedient · rank #22,754 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #22,754
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH OA

Nearest frequency peer: OA (-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 “obedient”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “obedient” 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).

obedient vs obedience
78% similar

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

Key facts for obedient
PropertyValue
Headwordobedient
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/əˈbiːdɪənt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#22,754
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “obedient”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).obedientlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “OA” (#22,753), “oculus” (#22,755), “nutty” (#22,752). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “obedient” is #22,754. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around obedient (IPA /əˈbiːdɪənt/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #22,754 among 1,431 “O” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Willing to comply with the commands, orders, or instructions of those in authority; biddable.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for obedient, with forms such as "boedient", "obbedient", and "obdeient". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "obedience", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English obedient, from Old French obedient, from Latin oboediēns, present active participle of oboediō (“obey”). The correct English form is obedient, spelled O-B-E-D-I-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Willing to comply with the commands, orders, or instructions of those in authority; biddable.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Jessica was so intensely obedient of her parents that her brother sometimes thought she was a robot.

Etymology

From Middle English obedient, from Old French obedient, from Latin oboediēns, present active participle of oboediō (“obey”).

Synonyms

hearsomedutifulcompliantbowsomebuxommorigerousobedibleobedientobsequentobsequioustalltoward

Antonyms

disobedientdominantargumentativebreachycontumaciousdefiantfrowardimmorigerousinobedientinsubmissiveinsubordinateinsurgentnonobedientobstreperousrebelliousrecalcitrantrecusantrefractoryrestiffrestiveunbowsomeunbuxomuncompliantuncontrollableuncooperativeungovernableunmanageableunobedientunobeyingunobligingunrulyunsubmissiveuntowardvolitient

This word in other languages

obediente(Español)obéissant(Français)gehorsam(Deutsch)obediente(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • boedient
  • obbedient
  • obdeient
  • obeddient
  • obedeint
  • obediennt
  • obedientt
  • obedietn
  • obedinet
  • obeident
  • oebdient

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of obedient - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

boedient2obbedient1obdeient2obeddient1obedeint2obediennt1obedientt1obedietn2
Edit distance from "obedient"

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 "obedient"?
"obedient" is spelled O-B-E-D-I-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈbiːdɪənt/.
What does "obedient" mean?
As an adjective, "obedient" means: Willing to comply with the commands, orders, or instructions of those in authority; biddable.
What words are commonly confused with "obedient"?
"obedient" is commonly confused with "obedience". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "obedient"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "obedient" is /əˈbiːdɪənt/. 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 "obedient"?
From Middle English obedient, from Old French obedient, from Latin oboediēns, present active participle of oboediō (“obey”). 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 "obedient", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

palpable#22,761perverse#22,766Madeline#22,734purified#22,780

Similar misspelling depth

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

patched11 variantsmolding11 variantsmilking11 variantsmarbles11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list