prelate

/ˈpɹɛlət/

//ˈpɹɛlət// noun

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

"prelate" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“prelate” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #44,416. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#44,416
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
11
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A clergyman of high rank and authority, having jurisdiction over an area or a group of people; normally a bishop.

Corpus desk

Index EN-prelate · prelate · English

prelate · rank #44,416 · 10 variants · 11 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #44,416
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 11 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH preferentially

Nearest frequency peer: preferentially (-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 “prelate”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “prelate” 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).

prelate vs private
71% similar
prelate vs prepare
71% similar
prelate vs prelude
71% similar

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

Key facts for prelate
PropertyValue
Headwordprelate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpɹɛlət/
Letters7
Frequency rank#44,416
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs11
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “prelate”

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).prelatelands 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 “preferentially” (#44,415), “premonition” (#44,417), “predefined” (#44,414). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “prelate” is #44,416. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around prelate (IPA /ˈpɹɛlət/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #44,416 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A clergyman of high rank and authority, having jurisdiction over an area or a group of people; normally a bishop.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for prelate, with forms such as "perlate", "pprelate", and "prealte". 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 11 confusable-pair relationships, "private", "prepare", "prelude", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French prelat (French prélat), from Medieval Latin praelātus, perfect passive participle of praeferō (“to carry before, prefer, exceed”), see -ate (noun-forming suffix). Doublet of prefer. See also infer, relate and refer, delate and defer, as well… The correct English form is prelate, spelled P-R-E-L-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A clergyman of high rank and authority, having jurisdiction over an area or a group of people; normally a bishop.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Hear him but reason in divinity, […] / You would desire the king were made a prelate.
  2. ’Tis acknowledg’d on all hands, ſays that learned Prelate, that the Authority, either of the Scripture or of Tradition, is founded merely on the Teſtimony of the Apoſtles, who were Eye-witneſſes to thoſe Miracles of our Saviour, by which he prov’d his divine Miſſion.

Etymology

From Old French prelat (French prélat), from Medieval Latin praelātus, perfect passive participle of praeferō (“to carry before, prefer, exceed”), see -ate (noun-forming suffix). Doublet of prefer. See also infer, relate and refer, delate and defer, as well as collate and confer among others.

This word in other languages

prelado(Español)prélat(Français)Prälat(Deutsch)prelado(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • perlate
  • pprelate
  • prealte
  • prelaet
  • prelatte
  • prellate
  • preltae
  • prleate
  • prrelate
  • rpelate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

perlate2pprelate1prealte2prelaet2prelatte1prellate1preltae2prleate2
Edit distance from "prelate"

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 "prelate"?
"prelate" is spelled P-R-E-L-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɹɛlət/.
What does "prelate" mean?
As a noun, "prelate" means: A clergyman of high rank and authority, having jurisdiction over an area or a group of people; normally a bishop.
What words are commonly confused with "prelate"?
"prelate" is commonly confused with "private", "prepare", "prelude". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "prelate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "prelate" is /ˈpɹɛlət/. 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 "prelate"?
From Old French prelat (French prélat), from Medieval Latin praelātus, perfect passive participle of praeferō (“to carry before, prefer, exceed”), see -ate (noun-forming suffix). Doublet of prefer. See also infer, relate and refer, delate and defe... 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 "prelate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

porting#44,411Qingdao#44,428Perugia#44,401Ravenna#44,436

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

Ramallah10 variantsRobison10 variantsroebuck10 variantsrotator10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list