route

/ɹuːt/

//ɹuːt// noun

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

"route" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“route” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,176. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,176
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A course or way which is traveled or passed.

Corpus desk

Index EN-route · route · English

route · rank #2,176 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,176
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH requires

Nearest frequency peer: requires (-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 “route”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “route” 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).

route vs rue
60% similar
route vs rut
60% similar
route vs rule
60% similar

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

Key facts for route
PropertyValue
Headwordroute
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɹuːt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#2,176
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “route”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).routelands 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 “requires” (#2,175), “saved” (#2,177), “relations” (#2,174). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “route” is #2,176. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around route (IPA /ɹuːt/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,176 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for route, with forms such as "orute", "rotue", and "rouet". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "rue", "rut", "rule", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English route, from Old French route, from Latin rupta [via] (literally “a path made by force”). Compare Modern French route. See routine. Further via Latin ruptus related with bankrupt. The correct English form is route, spelled R-O-U-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A course or way which is traveled or passed.
  2. 2
    A regular itinerary of stops, or the path followed between these stops, such as for delivery or passenger transportation.
  3. 3
    A road or path; often specifically a highway.
  4. 4
    One of multiple methods or approaches to doing something.
  5. 5
    One of the major provinces of imperial China from the Later Jin to the Song, corresponding to the Tang and early Yuan circuits.
  6. 6
    A specific entry in a router that tells the router how to transmit the data it receives.
  7. 7
    A race longer than one mile.
  8. 8
    A path that has been secured by a railway signalling system for the passage of a train and locked to prevent any conflicting train movements from taking place.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The route was used so much that it formed a rut.
  2. You need to find a route that you can take between these two obstacles.

Etymology

From Middle English route, from Old French route, from Latin rupta [via] (literally “a path made by force”). Compare Modern French route. See routine. Further via Latin ruptus related with bankrupt.

This word in other languages

ruta(Español)route(Français)Route(Deutsch)rota(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • orute
  • rotue
  • rouet
  • routte
  • rroute
  • ruote

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

orute2rotue2rouet2routte1rroute1ruote2
Edit distance from "route"

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 "route"?
"route" is spelled R-O-U-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹuːt/.
What does "route" mean?
As a noun, "route" means: A course or way which is traveled or passed.
What words are commonly confused with "route"?
"route" is commonly confused with "rue", "rut", "rule". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "route"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "route" is /ɹuːt/. 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 "route"?
From Middle English route, from Old French route, from Latin rupta [via] (literally “a path made by force”). Compare Modern French route. See routine. Further via Latin ruptus related with bankrupt. 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 "route", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

saved#2,177shoes#2,180smoke#2,181squad#2,182

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

legs6 variantsabuse6 variantsguns6 variantsappeal6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list