post

/pəʊst/

//pəʊst// noun

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

"post" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“post” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #360 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#360
frequency rank, English
4
letters
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A long dowel or plank protruding from the ground; a fencepost; a lightpost.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

post vs pt
50% similar
post vs PS
0% similar
post vs put
50% similar

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

Key facts for post
PropertyValue
Headwordpost
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pəʊst/
Letters4
Frequency rank#360
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “post” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for post is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pəʊst/. Corpus data places it at rank #360 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for post, with forms such as "opst", "posst", and "postt". 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, "pt", "PS", "put", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Old English post (“pillar, door-post”) and Latin postis (“a post, a door-post”) through Old French. . The correct English form is post, spelled P-O-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A long dowel or plank protruding from the ground; a fencepost; a lightpost.
  2. 2
    A stud; a two-by-four.
  3. 3
    A pole in a battery.
  4. 4
    A long, narrow piece inserted into a root canal to provide retention for a crown.
  5. 5
    A prolonged final melody note, among moving harmony notes.
  6. 6
    A printing paper size measuring 19.25 inches x 15.5 inches.
  7. 7
    A goalpost.
  8. 8
    A location on a basketball court near the basket.
  9. 9
    The doorpost of a victualler's shop or inn, on which were chalked the scores of customers; hence, a score; a debt.
  10. 10
    The vertical part of a crochet stitch.

Etymology

Inherited from Old English post (“pillar, door-post”) and Latin postis (“a post, a door-post”) through Old French. .

This word in other languages

poste(Español)poteau(Français)Pfosten(Deutsch)mourão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: opst,posst,postt,ppost,psot

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opst2posst1postt1ppost1psot2
Edit distance from "post"

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 "post"?
"post" is spelled P-O-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is /pəʊst/.
What does "post" mean?
As a noun, "post" means: A long dowel or plank protruding from the ground; a fencepost; a lightpost.
What words are commonly confused with "post"?
"post" is commonly confused with "pt", "PS", "put". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "post"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "post" is /pəʊst/. 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 "post"?
Inherited from Old English post (“pillar, door-post”) and Latin postis (“a post, a door-post”) through Old French. . 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.

Using “post”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is P-O-S-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /pəʊst/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “pt” - see the side-by-side comparison. post vs pt
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list