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pulpit

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

6 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "pulpit", 6-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "pulpit" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "pulpit" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

pulpit is aEnglishnoun. It means: A raised platform in a church, sometimes enclosed, where the minister or preacher stands when giving the sermon; also, the lectern on such a platform. Pronounced /ˈpʊlpɪt/. Often confused with pupil and puppet.

Key facts for pulpit
PropertyValue
Headwordpulpit
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpʊlpɪt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#21,629
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of pulpit in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for pulpit is 6 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈpʊlpɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #21,629 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 9 documented wrong-spelling variants for pulpit, with forms such as "plupit", "ppulpit", and "pulipt". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "pupil", "puppet", "pundit", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English pulpit, from Old French pulpite and Latin pulpitum (“platform”). Doublet of pulpitum. Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is pulpit, spelled P-U-L-P-I-T, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A raised platform in a church, sometimes enclosed, where the minister or preacher stands when giving the sermon; also, the lectern on such a platform.
  2. 2
    Activity associated with or usually performed from a church pulpit; preaching, sermons, religious teaching.
  3. 3
    The preaching profession, office, or role in general; the pastorate, the priesthood, the ministry.
  4. 4
    Preachers collectively; clergy; the priesthood.
  5. 5
    An individual or particular preaching position or role; a pastorate.
  6. 6
    Bully pulpit.
  7. 7
    Any lectern, podium, dais, or platform for an orator or public speaker.
  8. 8
    The railing at the bow of a boat, which sometimes extends past the deck; also called bow pulpit. The railing at the stern is sometimes called the stern pulpit or the pushpit.
  9. 9
    A bow platform for harpooning.
  10. 10
    A plane's cockpit.

Etymology

From Middle English pulpit, from Old French pulpite and Latin pulpitum (“platform”). Doublet of pulpitum.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: plupit,ppulpit,pulipt,pullpit,pulpitt,pulppit,pulpti,puplit,uplpit

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for pulpit

Misspelling Variants of "pulpit"

plupit6ppulpit7pulipt6pullpit7pulpitt7pulppit7pulpti6puplit6
Misspelling Variants of "pulpit"

Frequency rank: #21,629 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "pulpit"?
"pulpit" is spelled P-U-L-P-I-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpʊlpɪt/.
What does "pulpit" mean?
As a noun, "pulpit" means: A raised platform in a church, sometimes enclosed, where the minister or preacher stands when giving the sermon; also, the lectern on such a platform.
What words are commonly confused with "pulpit"?
"pulpit" is commonly confused with "pupil", "puppet", "pundit". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pulpit"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pulpit" is /ˈpʊlpɪt/. 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 "pulpit"?
From Middle English pulpit, from Old French pulpite and Latin pulpitum (“platform”). Doublet of pulpitum. 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter P in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.