per se
/pəˈseɪ/
"per-se" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“per se” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 6
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Without determination by or involvement of extraneous factors; by its very nature.
Corpus desk
Index EN-per-se · per se · English
per se · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 6 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "P" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | per se |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| IPA | /pəˈseɪ/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “per se” in English
Rare enough to double-check
per se is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed /pəˈseɪ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for per se, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin per sē (“by itself”), from per (“by, through”) and sē (“itself, himself, herself, themselves”). The correct English form is per se, spelled P-E-R- -S-E.
Definition
- 1Without determination by or involvement of extraneous factors; by its very nature.
- 2In a true or literal sense; as one would expect from the name or description.
- 3As the principle of its own determination and positing itself.
- 4Not leaving discretion to the judge to take into account additional factors that could rebut the judgment, deriving the qualification from the statute.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how per se appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Near-synonyms: by definition, by nature, essentially, in essence, ipso facto, intrinsically; see also Thesaurus:intrinsically
Some people say that a hangover is caused by impurities in the drink, not by the alcohol per se.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin per sē (“by itself”), from per (“by, through”) and sē (“itself, himself, herself, themselves”).
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.