premise

/ˈpɹɛm.ɪs/

//ˈpɹɛm.ɪs// noun

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

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

The verdict

“premise” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,384. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,384
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A proposition antecedently supposed or proved; something previously stated or assumed as the basis of further argument; a condition; a supposition.

Corpus desk

Index EN-premise · premise · English

premise · rank #9,384 · 9 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,384
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH predecessor

Nearest frequency peer: predecessor (-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 “premise”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “premise” 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).

premise vs promise
86% similar
premise vs premium
71% similar
premise vs preside
71% similar

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

Key facts for premise
PropertyValue
Headwordpremise
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpɹɛm.ɪs/
Letters7
Frequency rank#9,384
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “premise”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).premiselands 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 “predecessor” (#9,383), “quiz” (#9,385), “practiced” (#9,382). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “premise” is #9,384. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around premise (IPA /ˈpɹɛm.ɪs/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,384 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for premise, with forms such as "permise", "ppremise", and "preimse". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "promise", "premium", "preside", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English premise, premisse, from Old French premisse, from Medieval Latin premissa (“set before”) (premissa propositio (“the proposition set before”)), feminine past participle of Latin praemittere (“to send or put before”), from prae- (“before”)… The correct English form is premise, spelled P-R-E-M-I-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A proposition antecedently supposed or proved; something previously stated or assumed as the basis of further argument; a condition; a supposition.
  2. 2
    Any of the first propositions of a syllogism, from which the conclusion is deduced.
  3. 3
    Matters previously stated or set forth; especially, that part in the beginning of a deed, the office of which is to express the grantor and grantee, and the land or thing granted or conveyed, and all that precedes the habendum; the thing demised or granted.
  4. 4
    A piece of real estate; a building and its adjuncts.
  5. 5
    The fundamental concept that drives the plot of a film or other story.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The premises observed, Thy will by my performance shall be served.
  2. While the premises stand firm, 'tis impossible to shake the conclusion.

Etymology

From Middle English premise, premisse, from Old French premisse, from Medieval Latin premissa (“set before”) (premissa propositio (“the proposition set before”)), feminine past participle of Latin praemittere (“to send or put before”), from prae- (“before”) + mittere (“to send”). Sense 4, a piece of real estate arose from the misinterpretation of the word by property owners while reading title deeds where the word was used with the legal sense.

This word in other languages

premisa(Español)prémisse(Français)Prämisse(Deutsch)premissa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • permise
  • ppremise
  • preimse
  • premies
  • premmise
  • premsie
  • prmeise
  • prremise
  • rpemise

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

permise2ppremise1preimse2premies2premmise1premsie2prmeise2prremise1
Edit distance from "premise"

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 "premise"?
"premise" is spelled P-R-E-M-I-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɹɛm.ɪs/.
What does "premise" mean?
As a noun, "premise" means: A proposition antecedently supposed or proved; something previously stated or assumed as the basis of further argument; a condition; a supposition.
What words are commonly confused with "premise"?
"premise" is commonly confused with "promise", "premium", "preside". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "premise"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "premise" is /ˈpɹɛm.ɪs/. 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 "premise"?
From Middle English premise, premisse, from Old French premisse, from Medieval Latin premissa (“set before”) (premissa propositio (“the proposition set before”)), feminine past participle of Latin praemittere (“to send or put before”), from prae- ... 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 "premise", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

sunrise#9,402Messing#9,363Timothy#9,409tornado#9,411

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

pardon9 variantsremedy9 variantsreplay9 variantsnickel9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list