preferment

Name: preferment, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/pɹɪˈfəːmənt/

//pɹɪˈfəːmənt// noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“preferment” is uncommon English (frequency #84,627 among 46,516 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#84,627
frequency rank, English: 46,516
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Prior claim (on payment, or on purchasing something); the first rights to obtain a particular payment or product.

Key facts for preferment
Property	Value
Headword	preferment
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/pɹɪˈfəːmənt/
Letters	10
Frequency rank	#84,627
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “preferment” 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). preferment lands here:

#84,627

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

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

Rare enough to double-check

preferment is uncommon English at frequency #84,627 among 46,516 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /pɹɪˈfəːmənt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

preferment doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English preferment, preferrement, prefferment; equivalent to prefer + -ment. The correct English form is preferment, spelled P-R-E-F-E-R-M-E-N-T.

Definition

1
Prior claim (on payment, or on purchasing something); the first rights to obtain a particular payment or product.
2
The fact of being pushed or advanced to a more favourable situation; furtherance, promotion (of a candidate, action, undertaking etc.).
3
Advancement to a higher position or office; promotion.
4
A position (especially in the Church of England) that provides profit or prestige.
5
The fact of preferring something; preference.

Etymology

From Middle English preferment, preferrement, prefferment; equivalent to prefer + -ment.

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 "preferment"?

"preferment" is spelled P-R-E-F-E-R-M-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /pɹɪˈfəːmənt/.

What does "preferment" mean?

As a noun, "preferment" means: Prior claim (on payment, or on purchasing something); the first rights to obtain a particular payment or product.

How do you pronounce "preferment"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "preferment" is /pɹɪˈfəːmənt/. 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 "preferment"?

From Middle English preferment, preferrement, prefferment; equivalent to prefer + -ment. 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 “preferment”

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

The one correct English spelling is P-R-E-F-E-R-M-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /pɹɪˈfəːmənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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.