performative

Name: performative, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

adj

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“performative” has 18 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #45,579. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#45,579
frequency rank, English: 4,417
“P” headwords: 18
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Being enacted as it is said.

Corpus desk

Index EN-performative · performative · English

performative · rank #45,579 · 18 variants · 0 confusables

FREQ-MID #45,579
LEN-MEGA 12 letters
VOW-5 5 vowels
CONFUS-0 No pairs
VAR-HIGH 18 variants
BOOK-MID 4,417
PHOTO-FINISH pensive

Nearest frequency peer: pensive (-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.

Pattison

54,427
peachtree

54,425
pensive

54,423
performative

54,422
permeate

54,421
petticoat

54,419

What this shows “performative” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Key facts for performative
Property	Value
Headword	performative
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
Letters	12
Frequency rank	#45,579
Misspellings tracked	18
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “performative”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).performativelands here:

#45,579

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “pensive” (#45,578), “permeate” (#45,580), “peachtree” (#45,576). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “performative” is #45,579. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 18 spelling variants around performative, anadjective. Corpus frequency is #45,579 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for performative, with forms such as "eprformative", "pefrormative", and "perfformative". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From perform + -ative. The correct English form is performative, spelled P-E-R-F-O-R-M-A-T-I-V-E.

Definition

1
Being enacted as it is said.
2
Insincere, inauthentic or disingenuous; done solely or largely as a performance, to produce an impression or enhance one's reputation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

Saying "I do" as part of a wedding ceremony is performative, enacting a marriage.
Thus in the example: 'By saying “I do” I was marrying her', the performative 'I do' is a means to the end of marriage. Here 'saying' is used in the sense in which it takes inverted commas and is using words or language, a phatic and not[…]

Etymology

From perform + -ative.

Synonyms

performatory workly

This word in other languages

performático(Español)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

eprformative
pefrormative
perfformative
perfomrative
perforamtive
performaitve
performatiev
performativve
performattive
performatvie
performmative
performtaive
perforrmative
perfromative
perofrmative
perrformative
pperformative
preformative

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

Edit distance from "performative"

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 "performative"?

"performative" is spelled P-E-R-F-O-R-M-A-T-I-V-E.

What does "performative" mean?

As an adjective, "performative" means: Being enacted as it is said.

What are common misspellings of "performative"?

Common misspellings include "eprformative", "pefrormative", "perfformative", "perfomrative", "perforamtive". The correct spelling is "performative".

What is the origin of the word "performative"?

From perform + -ative. 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 "performative", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

precondition#45,597 sharpshooter#45,651 Thessaloniki#45,697 isolationist#45,453

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (18 here; floor ≥5).

Rockhampton18 variants universalist18 variants acceptability18 variants fibromyalgia18 variants