posthumous

/ˈpɒs.t͡ʃʊ.məs/

//ˈpɒs.t͡ʃʊ.məs// adj

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

"posthumous" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“posthumous” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #30,184. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#30,184
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - After the death of someone.

Corpus desk

Index EN-posthumous · posthumous · English

posthumous · rank #30,184 · 15 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #30,184
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH posterity

Nearest frequency peer: posterity (-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 “posthumous”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “posthumous” 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).

posthumous vs posthumously
83% similar

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

Key facts for posthumous
PropertyValue
Headwordposthumous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈpɒs.t͡ʃʊ.məs/
Letters10
Frequency rank#30,184
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “posthumous”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).posthumouslands 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 “posterity” (#30,183), “pounce” (#30,185), “pragmatism” (#30,186). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “posthumous” is #30,184. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around posthumous (IPA /ˈpɒs.t͡ʃʊ.məs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #30,184 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for posthumous, with forms such as "opsthumous", "poshtumous", and "possthumous". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "posthumously", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin posthumus, a variant spelling of postumus, superlative form of posterus (“coming after”), the ⟨h⟩ added by association with humus (“ground, earth”) referring to burial. The correct English form is posthumous, spelled P-O-S-T-H-U-M-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    After the death of someone.
  2. 2
    Taking place after one's own death.
  3. 3
    In reference to a work, published after the author's death.
  4. 4
    In reference to a musical opus, published or initially performed after the composer's death.
  5. 5
    Born after the death of one's father.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The most favorable posthumous history the stay-at-home traitor can hope for is—oblivion.
  2. Artists obscure during their life often receive posthumous recognition, too late for them to enjoy.

Etymology

From Latin posthumus, a variant spelling of postumus, superlative form of posterus (“coming after”), the ⟨h⟩ added by association with humus (“ground, earth”) referring to burial.

Synonyms

post mortempost obitum

Antonyms

antemortemanthumouspredeathprehumouspremortem

This word in other languages

póstumo(Español)posthume(Français)postum(Deutsch)póstumo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • opsthumous
  • poshtumous
  • possthumous
  • posthhumous
  • posthmuous
  • posthummous
  • posthumosu
  • posthumouss
  • posthumuos
  • posthuomus
  • postthumous
  • postuhmous
  • potshumous
  • pposthumous
  • psothumous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opsthumous2poshtumous2possthumous1posthhumous1posthmuous2posthummous1posthumosu2posthumouss1
Edit distance from "posthumous"

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 "posthumous"?
"posthumous" is spelled P-O-S-T-H-U-M-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɒs.t͡ʃʊ.məs/.
What does "posthumous" mean?
As an adjective, "posthumous" means: After the death of someone.
What words are commonly confused with "posthumous"?
"posthumous" is commonly confused with "posthumously". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "posthumous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "posthumous" is /ˈpɒs.t͡ʃʊ.məs/. 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 "posthumous"?
From Latin posthumus, a variant spelling of postumus, superlative form of posterus (“coming after”), the ⟨h⟩ added by association with humus (“ground, earth”) referring to burial. 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 "posthumous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

pragmatism#30,186quantified#30,192recounting#30,196motionless#30,144

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

offensively15 variantsunderscore15 variantsventilator15 variantsvertebrate15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list