persist

/pɚˈsɪst/

//pɚˈsɪst// verb

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

"persist" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“persist” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #14,381. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#14,381
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To go on stubbornly or resolutely.

Corpus desk

Index EN-persist · persist · English

persist · rank #14,381 · 11 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #14,381
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pediatric

Nearest frequency peer: pediatric (-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 “persist”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “persist” 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).

persist vs purist
71% similar
persist vs persisted
78% similar
persist vs permit
71% similar

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

Key facts for persist
PropertyValue
Headwordpersist
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/pɚˈsɪst/
Letters7
Frequency rank#14,381
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “persist”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).persistlands 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 “pediatric” (#14,380), “pawn” (#14,379), “planner” (#14,383). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “persist” is #14,381. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around persist (IPA /pɚˈsɪst/), averb. Corpus frequency is #14,381 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for persist, with forms such as "eprsist", "perisst", and "perrsist". 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. It also participates in 6 confusable-pair relationships, "purist", "persisted", "permit", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French persister (Modern French persister), from Latin persistere, from per- + sistere (“to stand”). The correct English form is persist, spelled P-E-R-S-I-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To go on stubbornly or resolutely.
  2. 2
    To repeat an utterance.
  3. 3
    To continue to exist.
  4. 4
    To continue to be; to remain.
  5. 5
    To cause to persist; make permanent.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. There is a way in which Britain is certain to have war and its horrors and calamities; it is this--by persisting in her present course of unpreparedness, her apathy, unintelligence, and blindness, and in her disregard of the warnings of the most ordinary political insight, as well as of the example of history.
  2. Much of this prejudice, indeed, persists; for instance, in the heavy handicappings with which insurance companies saddle their West Indian policies, […]

Etymology

From Middle French persister (Modern French persister), from Latin persistere, from per- + sistere (“to stand”).

Synonyms

perseverelastremainabideabyastandendurego onlieprevailhold onlivepersiststickstick it outstick out

Antonyms

breakfailyield

This word in other languages

persistir(Español)persister(Français)beharren(Deutsch)persistir(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eprsist
  • perisst
  • perrsist
  • persisst
  • persistt
  • persits
  • perssist
  • perssit
  • pesrist
  • ppersist
  • presist

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

eprsist2perisst2perrsist1persisst1persistt1persits2perssist1perssit2
Edit distance from "persist"

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 "persist"?
"persist" is spelled P-E-R-S-I-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is /pɚˈsɪst/.
What does "persist" mean?
As a verb, "persist" means: To go on stubbornly or resolutely.
What words are commonly confused with "persist"?
"persist" is commonly confused with "purist", "persisted", "permit". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "persist"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "persist" is /pɚˈsɪst/. 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 "persist"?
From Middle French persister (Modern French persister), from Latin persistere, from per- + sistere (“to stand”). 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 "persist", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

planner#14,383plaster#14,384playful#14,385omitted#14,374

Similar misspelling depth

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

overlook11 variantsmaneuver11 variantsmagician11 variantslurking11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list