Satan

/ˈseɪ.tən/

//ˈseɪ.tən// name

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

The verdict

“Satan” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,970. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,970
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The supreme evil spirit in the Abrahamic religions, who tempts humanity into sin; the Devil; (Theistic Satanism) the same figure, regarded as a deity to be revered and worshipped.

Corpus desk

Index EN-satan · Satan · English

Satan · rank #7,970 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,970
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sanctuary

Nearest frequency peer: sanctuary (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “Satan”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “Satan” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

Satan vs STA
20% similar
Satan vs stay
40% similar
Satan vs star
40% similar

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

Key facts for Satan
PropertyValue
HeadwordSatan
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈseɪ.tən/
Letters5
Frequency rank#7,970
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Satan” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).Satanlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “sanctuary” (#7,969), “satisfying” (#7,971), “revival” (#7,968). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around Satan (IPA /ˈseɪ.tən/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #7,970 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for Satan, with forms such as "astan", "saatn", and "satann". 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, "STA", "stay", "star", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English Sathan, Satan, from Old English Satan, from Latin Satan, from Ancient Greek Σατάν (Satán), from Hebrew שָׂטָן (satán, “adversary, accuser”) and Arabic شَيْطَان (šayṭān, “satan, devil”). Doublet of shaitan. The correct English form is Satan, spelled S-A-T-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The supreme evil spirit in the Abrahamic religions, who tempts humanity into sin; the Devil; (Theistic Satanism) the same figure, regarded as a deity to be revered and worshipped.
  2. 2
    A person or animal regarded as particularly malignant, detestable, or evil; used as an epithet or as a name for an animal.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Many Satanists reject the notion that Satan is bad.
  2. And he shewed me Ioshua the high Priest, standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. / And the Lord said vnto Satan; The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan, euen the Lord that hath chosen Ierusalem rebuke thee. Is not this a brand pluckt out of the fire?

Etymology

From Middle English Sathan, Satan, from Old English Satan, from Latin Satan, from Ancient Greek Σατάν (Satán), from Hebrew שָׂטָן (satán, “adversary, accuser”) and Arabic شَيْطَان (šayṭān, “satan, devil”). Doublet of shaitan.

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • astan
  • saatn
  • satann
  • sattan
  • ssatan
  • staan

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Satan - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

astan2saatn2satann1sattan1ssatan1staan2
Edit distance from "Satan"

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 "Satan"?
"Satan" is spelled S-A-T-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈseɪ.tən/.
What does "Satan" mean?
As a proper noun, "Satan" means: The supreme evil spirit in the Abrahamic religions, who tempts humanity into sin; the Devil; (Theistic Satanism) the same figure, regarded as a deity to be revered and worshipped.
What words are commonly confused with "Satan"?
"Satan" is commonly confused with "STA", "stay", "star". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Satan"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Satan" is /ˈseɪ.tən/. 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 "Satan"?
From Middle English Sathan, Satan, from Old English Satan, from Latin Satan, from Ancient Greek Σατάν (Satán), from Hebrew שָׂטָן (satán, “adversary, accuser”) and Arabic شَيْطَان (šayṭān, “satan, devil”). Doublet of shaitan. 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 "Satan", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Similar misspelling depth

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

What to do next

You've looked up "Satan". Here's where to go from here.

  • "Satan" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "STA". View pair
  • 6 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #7,970 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "S" letter cohort. S–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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