postpone

/poʊstˈpoʊn/

//poʊstˈpoʊn// verb

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

"postpone" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“postpone” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #15,480. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#15,480
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To delay or put off an event, appointment, etc.

Corpus desk

Index EN-postpone · postpone · English

postpone · rank #15,480 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #15,480
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH progressively

Nearest frequency peer: progressively (+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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “postpone”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “postpone” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

postpone vs postcode
75% similar

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

Key facts for postpone
PropertyValue
Headwordpostpone
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/poʊstˈpoʊn/
Letters8
Frequency rank#15,480
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “postpone” sits in English frequency

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).postpone lands here:

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

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

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around postpone (IPA /poʊstˈpoʊn/), averb. Corpus frequency is #15,480 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for postpone, with forms such as "opstpone", "posptone", and "posstpone". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "postcode", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin postpōnō (“I put after; I postpone”) from post (“after”) + pōnō (“I put; I place”), compare forestall. The correct English form is postpone, spelled P-O-S-T-P-O-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To delay or put off an event, appointment, etc.
  2. 2
    To place after in order; to deem less important.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. “[…] Churchill, my dear fellow, we have such greedy sharks, and wolves in lamb's clothing. Oh, dear, there's so much to tell you, so many warnings to give you, but all that must be postponed for the moment.”
  2. Significant rail projects have been mothballed before in the face of changed circumstances – in particular, the LNER Woodhead project which was postponed due to wartime conditions and not revived until 1948, as money became available after nationalisation.

Etymology

From Latin postpōnō (“I put after; I postpone”) from post (“after”) + pōnō (“I put; I place”), compare forestall.

Antonyms

advancebring forwardprepone

This word in other languages

aplazar(Español)repousser(Français)verschieben(Deutsch)adiar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • opstpone
  • posptone
  • posstpone
  • postopne
  • postpnoe
  • postpoen
  • postponne
  • postppone
  • posttpone
  • potspone
  • ppostpone
  • psotpone

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opstpone2posptone2posstpone1postopne2postpnoe2postpoen2postponne1postppone1
Edit distance from "postpone"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "postpone"?
"postpone" is spelled P-O-S-T-P-O-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /poʊstˈpoʊn/.
What does "postpone" mean?
As a verb, "postpone" means: To delay or put off an event, appointment, etc.
What words are commonly confused with "postpone"?
"postpone" is commonly confused with "postcode". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "postpone"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "postpone" is /poʊstˈpoʊn/. 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 "postpone"?
From Latin postpōnō (“I put after; I postpone”) from post (“after”) + pōnō (“I put; I place”), compare forestall. 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 "postpone", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

podcasts#15,478pilgrims#15,474ordained#15,460Normandy#15,456

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

Schultz12 variantsnightly12 variantsstyling12 variantsKathryn12 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "postpone". Here's where to go from here.

  • This headword has one recorded confusable pair with "postcode". View pair
  • 12 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #15,480 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "P" letter cohort. P–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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