rest

/ɹɛst/

//ɹɛst// noun

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

"rest" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“rest” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #594 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#594
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Relief from work or activity by sleeping; sleep.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

rest vs RS
0% similar
rest vs RT
0% similar
rest vs rev
50% similar

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

Key facts for rest
PropertyValue
Headwordrest
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɹɛst/
Letters4
Frequency rank#594
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “rest” 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). rest lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for rest is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɹɛst/. Corpus data places it at rank #594 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 15 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for rest, with forms such as "erst", "resst", and "restt". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "RS", "RT", "rev", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English rest, reste, from Old English ræst, from Proto-West Germanic *rastu, from Proto-Germanic *rastō, from Proto-Indo-European *ros-, *res-, *erH- (“rest”). Cognate with West Frisian rêst (“rest”), Dutch rust (“rest”), German Rast (“rest”), S… The correct English form is rest, spelled R-E-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Relief from work or activity by sleeping; sleep.
  2. 2
    Any relief from exertion; a state of quiet and relaxation.
  3. 3
    Peace; freedom from worry, anxiety, annoyances; tranquility.
  4. 4
    A state of inactivity; a state of little or no motion; a state of completion.
  5. 5
    A final position after death. Also, death itself: "Not alone, not alone would I go to my rest in the heart of the love..." -- George William Russell ("Love")
  6. 6
    A pause of a specified length in a piece of music.
  7. 7
    A written symbol indicating such a pause in a musical score such as in sheet music.
  8. 8
    Absence of motion.
  9. 9
    A stick with a U-, V- or X-shaped head used to support the tip of a cue when the cue ball is otherwise out of reach.
  10. 10
    Any object designed to be used to support something else.
  11. 11
    A projection from the right side of the cuirass of armour, serving to support the lance.
  12. 12
    A place where one may rest, either temporarily, as in an inn, or permanently, as, in an abode.
  13. 13
    A short pause in reading poetry; a caesura.
  14. 14
    The striking of a balance at regular intervals in a running account. Often, specifically, the intervals after which compound interest is added to capital.
  15. 15
    A set or game at tennis.

Etymology

From Middle English rest, reste, from Old English ræst, from Proto-West Germanic *rastu, from Proto-Germanic *rastō, from Proto-Indo-European *ros-, *res-, *erH- (“rest”). Cognate with West Frisian rêst (“rest”), Dutch rust (“rest”), German Rast (“rest”), Swedish rast (“rest”), Norwegian rest (“rest”), Icelandic röst (“rest”), Old Irish árus (“dwelling”), German Ruhe (“calm”), Albanian resht (“to stop, pause”), Welsh araf (“quiet, calm, gentle”), Lithuanian rovà (“calm”), Ancient Greek ἐρωή (erōḗ, “rest, respite”), Avestan 𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌𐬨𐬈 (aⁱrime, “calm, peaceful”), Sanskrit रमते (rámate, “he stays still, calms down”), Gothic 𐍂𐌹𐌼𐌹𐍃 (rimis, “tranquility”). Related to roo.

Antonyms

activity

This word in other languages

reposo(Español)repos(Français)Ruhe(Deutsch)repouso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: erst,resst,restt,rets,rrest,rset

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of rest - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

erst2resst1restt1rets2rrest1rset2
Edit distance from "rest"

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 "rest"?
"rest" is spelled R-E-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹɛst/.
What does "rest" mean?
As a noun, "rest" means: Relief from work or activity by sleeping; sleep.
What words are commonly confused with "rest"?
"rest" is commonly confused with "RS", "RT", "rev". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "rest"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "rest" is /ɹɛst/. 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 "rest"?
From Middle English rest, reste, from Old English ræst, from Proto-West Germanic *rastu, from Proto-Germanic *rastō, from Proto-Indo-European *ros-, *res-, *erH- (“rest”). Cognate with West Frisian rêst (“rest”), Dutch rust (“rest”), German Rast (... 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 “rest”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is R-E-S-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɹɛst/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “RS” - see the side-by-side comparison. rest vs RS
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list