postmodern

adj

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

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

The verdict

“postmodern” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,205. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,205
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
16
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Relating to what follows the modern era.

Corpus desk

Index EN-postmodern · postmodern · English

postmodern · rank #26,205 · 16 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,205
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pondering

Nearest frequency peer: pondering (-2 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 “postmodern”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “postmodern” 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
Key facts for postmodern
PropertyValue
Headwordpostmodern
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters10
Frequency rank#26,205
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “postmodern”

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).postmodernlands 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 “pondering” (#26,203), “prerogative” (#26,207), “Polaris” (#26,202). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “postmodern” is #26,205. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around postmodern, anadjective. Corpus frequency is #26,205 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for postmodern, with forms such as "opstmodern", "posmtodern", and "posstmodern". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From post- + modern. The correct English form is postmodern, spelled P-O-S-T-M-O-D-E-R-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Relating to what follows the modern era.
  2. 2
    Of, relating to, or having the characteristics of postmodernism, especially as represented in art, architecture, literature, science, or philosophy that reacts against an earlier modernism.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The nearer is a fact to the temporary limits of knowledge, the more implicated becomes this regression and the more blurred ought to be statement of fact. [Percy W.] Bridgman of Harvard recently has emphasized this conclusion, but his postmodern position has as yet made small impression.
  2. A new book by Peter Drucker, author of “The New Society” and “America's Next Twenty Years,” will be published next Wednesday by Harper. In “Landmarks of Tomorrow,” Mr. Drucker discusses the postmodern world and how it differs from the old “modern” world that began with Descartes and the empiricists.

Etymology

From post- + modern.

This word in other languages

posmoderno(Español)postmoderne(Français)postmodern(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • opstmodern
  • posmtodern
  • posstmodern
  • postmdoern
  • postmmodern
  • postmoddern
  • postmodenr
  • postmodernn
  • postmoderrn
  • postmodren
  • postmoedrn
  • postomdern
  • posttmodern
  • potsmodern
  • ppostmodern
  • psotmodern

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opstmodern2posmtodern2posstmodern1postmdoern2postmmodern1postmoddern1postmodenr2postmodernn1
Edit distance from "postmodern"

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 "postmodern"?
"postmodern" is spelled P-O-S-T-M-O-D-E-R-N.
What does "postmodern" mean?
As an adjective, "postmodern" means: Relating to what follows the modern era.
What are common misspellings of "postmodern"?
Common misspellings include "opstmodern", "posmtodern", "posstmodern", "postmdoern", "postmmodern". The correct spelling is "postmodern".
What is the origin of the word "postmodern"?
From post- + modern. 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 "postmodern", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

prudential#26,211rationally#26,220repressive#26,227moratorium#26,172

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

prerogative16 variantsresourceful16 variantssacrificial16 variantsstoryteller16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list