placard

/ˈplæk.ɑːd/

//ˈplæk.ɑːd// noun

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

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

The verdict

“placard” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #41,311. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#41,311
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A sheet of paper or cardboard with a written or printed announcement on one side for display in a public place.

Corpus desk

Index EN-placard · placard · English

placard · rank #41,311 · 11 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #41,311
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH phish

Nearest frequency peer: phish (-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 “placard”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “placard” 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).

placard vs placed
71% similar
placard vs planar
71% similar
placard vs placid
71% similar

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

Key facts for placard
PropertyValue
Headwordplacard
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈplæk.ɑːd/
Letters7
Frequency rank#41,311
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “placard”

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).placardlands 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 “phish” (#41,310), “Plutarch” (#41,312), “pheromone” (#41,308). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “placard” is #41,311. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around placard (IPA /ˈplæk.ɑːd/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #41,311 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for placard, with forms such as "lpacard", "palcard", and "plaacrd". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "placed", "planar", "placid", and more, 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 placard (“official document”), from Middle French placard, placart, plaquart (“a placard, a writing pasted on a wall”), from the Old French verb plaquer, plaquier (“to stick or paste, roughcast”), from Middle Dutch placken, plecken (“to … The correct English form is placard, spelled P-L-A-C-A-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A sheet of paper or cardboard with a written or printed announcement on one side for display in a public place.
  2. 2
    A public proclamation; a manifesto or edict issued by authority.
  3. 3
    Permission given by authority; a license.
  4. 4
    An extra plate on the lower part of the breastplate or backplate of armour.
  5. 5
    A kind of stomacher, often adorned with jewels, worn in the fifteenth century and later.
  6. 6
    The woodwork and frame of the door of a closet etc.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Especially from Mr. Borthrop Trumbull, a distinguished bachelor and auctioneer of those parts, much concerned in the sale of land and cattle: a public character, indeed, whose name was seen on widely distributed placards, and who might reasonably be sorry for those who did not know of him.
  2. He brought out the placard, which was quite a work of art. It was nearly two feet long, printed on calendered paper, with a selection of colors so bright that they shone even in the moonlight.

Etymology

From Middle English placard (“official document”), from Middle French placard, placart, plaquart (“a placard, a writing pasted on a wall”), from the Old French verb plaquer, plaquier (“to stick or paste, roughcast”), from Middle Dutch placken, plecken (“to glue or fasten, plaster, patch”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *plaggą (“a piece of cloth, patch”), equivalent to plaque + -ard. Related to Middle Low German placken (“to smear with lime or clay, plaster”), Saterland Frisian Plak, Plakke (“a hit, smack, slap”), German Placken (“a spot, patch”), Icelandic plagg (“a document”), Hebrew פלקט (plakat, “a large sheet of paper, typically with a photo or writing, posted on the wall”), English play. Compare also Modern Dutch plakkaat (“placard”), Saterland Frisian Plakoat (“a placard, poster”). More at play.

This word in other languages

letrero(Español)affiche(Français)Plakat(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • lpacard
  • palcard
  • plaacrd
  • placadr
  • placardd
  • placarrd
  • placcard
  • placrad
  • plcaard
  • pllacard
  • pplacard

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

lpacard2palcard2plaacrd2placadr2placardd1placarrd1placcard1placrad2
Edit distance from "placard"

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 "placard"?
"placard" is spelled P-L-A-C-A-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈplæk.ɑːd/.
What does "placard" mean?
As a noun, "placard" means: A sheet of paper or cardboard with a written or printed announcement on one side for display in a public place.
What words are commonly confused with "placard"?
"placard" is commonly confused with "placed", "planar", "placid". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "placard"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "placard" is /ˈplæk.ɑːd/. 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 "placard"?
From Middle English placard (“official document”), from Middle French placard, placart, plaquart (“a placard, a writing pasted on a wall”), from the Old French verb plaquer, plaquier (“to stick or paste, roughcast”), from Middle Dutch placken, ple... 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 "placard", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

pothole#41,316potting#41,317Paulsen#41,303Parvati#41,301

Similar misspelling depth

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

pedicure11 variantsPancras11 variantsrinsing11 variantsMowbray11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list