repellent
/ɹəˈpɛlənt/
"repellent" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“repellent” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #31,315 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #31,315
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Repulsive, inspiring aversion.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | repellent |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ɹəˈpɛlənt/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #31,315 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “repellent” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for repellent is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɹəˈpɛlənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #31,315 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for repellent, with forms such as "erpellent", "reepllent", and "repelelnt". 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. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin repellēns. Equivalent to repel + -ent. The correct English form is repellent, spelled R-E-P-E-L-L-E-N-T.
Definition
- 1Repulsive, inspiring aversion.
- 2Resistant or impervious to something.
- 3Tending or able to repel; driving back.
Etymology
From Latin repellēns. Equivalent to repel + -ent.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: erpellent,reepllent,repelelnt,repelent,repellennt,repellentt,repelletn,repellnet,replelent,reppellent,rpeellent,rrepellent
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of repellent - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "repellent"?
What does "repellent" mean?
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Using “repellent”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is R-E-P-E-L-L-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɹəˈpɛlənt/ (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
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.