poised

/pɔɪzd/

//pɔɪzd// adj

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

"poised" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“poised” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,560. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,560
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Possessing poise, having self-confidence.

Corpus desk

Index EN-poised · poised · English

poised · rank #16,560 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,560
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pol

Nearest frequency peer: pol (+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 “poised”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “poised” 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).

poised vs pose
67% similar
poised vs posed
83% similar
poised vs poked
67% similar

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

Key facts for poised
PropertyValue
Headwordpoised
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/pɔɪzd/
Letters6
Frequency rank#16,560
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “poised”

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

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “pol” (#16,561), “pimp” (#16,558), “posterior” (#16,562). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “poised” is #16,560. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around poised (IPA /pɔɪzd/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #16,560 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for poised, with forms such as "opised", "piosed", and "poiesd". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "pose", "posed", "poked", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct English form is poised, spelled P-O-I-S-E-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Possessing poise, having self-confidence.
  2. 2
    Ready, prepared.
  3. 3
    Balanced, in position, in equilibrium.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He stood there, poised to act, and then suddenly he drew his gun in a smooth arc.
  2. Amir stated that Rabin was a "pursuer" who was poised to spill the blood of many Jews by giving up control over part of the West Bank

This word in other languages

listo(Español)prêt(Français)selbstsicher(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • opised
  • piosed
  • poiesd
  • poisde
  • poisedd
  • poissed
  • posied
  • ppoised

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of poised - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

opised2piosed2poiesd2poisde2poisedd1poissed1posied2ppoised1
Edit distance from "poised"

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 "poised"?
"poised" is spelled P-O-I-S-E-D. The IPA pronunciation is /pɔɪzd/.
What does "poised" mean?
As an adjective, "poised" means: Possessing poise, having self-confidence.
What words are commonly confused with "poised"?
"poised" is commonly confused with "pose", "posed", "poked". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "poised"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "poised" is /pɔɪzd/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "poised" come from?
"poised" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 "poised", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

pharma#16,557petite#16,555Oswald#16,551rumble#16,579

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Sachs8 variantsshack8 variantsSuzuki8 variantslagoon8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list