satisfactory

Name: satisfactory, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/sætɪsˈfækt(ə)ɹi/

//sætɪsˈfækt(ə)ɹi// adj

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“satisfactory” has 19 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,600. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,600
frequency rank, English: 6,566
“S” headwords: 19
tracked misspellings: 1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Done to satisfaction; adequate or sufficient.

Corpus desk

Index EN-satisfactory · satisfactory · English

satisfactory · rank #13,600 · 19 variants · 1 confusable

FREQ-MID #13,600
LEN-MEGA 12 letters
VOW-5 5 vowels
CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
VAR-HIGH 19 variants
BOOK-DENSE 6,566
PHOTO-FINISH sanitation

Nearest frequency peer: sanitation (-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.

rosemary

86,405
rubbed

86,404
sandstone

86,403
sanitation

86,402
satisfactory

86,401
scooter

86,400

What this shows “satisfactory” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

satisfactory vs satisfactorily

86% similar

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

Key facts for satisfactory
Property	Value
Headword	satisfactory
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
IPA	/sætɪsˈfækt(ə)ɹi/
Letters	12
Frequency rank	#13,600
Misspellings tracked	19
Confusable pairs	1
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “satisfactory”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).satisfactorylands here:

#13,600

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “sanitation” (#13,599), “scooter” (#13,601), “sandstone” (#13,598). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “satisfactory” is #13,600. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 19 spelling variants around satisfactory (IPA /sætɪsˈfækt(ə)ɹi/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #13,600 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 19 likely wrong-spelling variants for satisfactory, with forms such as "astisfactory", "saitsfactory", and "satifsactory". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "satisfactorily", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Middle French satisfactoire, from Late Latin satisfactōrius, from Latin satisfactus, past participle of satisfaciō. The correct English form is satisfactory, spelled S-A-T-I-S-F-A-C-T-O-R-Y.

Definition

1
Done to satisfaction; adequate or sufficient.
2
Causing satisfaction; agreeable or pleasant; satisfying.
3
Making atonement for a sin; expiatory.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

The satisfactory results of the survey led to his promotion.
The criterion of mental health is not one of individual adjustment to a given social order, but a universal one, valid for all men, of giving a satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French satisfactoire, from Late Latin satisfactōrius, from Latin satisfactus, past participle of satisfaciō.

Synonyms

acceptable adequate all right averageclose enoughclose enough for government workclose enough for horseshoes and hand grenadesdecent favoursome fair fine jake good enoughgood enough for government workhunky dory koshermustn't grumblenonbad not bad not half bad OK okay okayish passablepretty goodtolerable up to par up to scratch up to snuff reasonable respectable satisfactory snug sufficient suitable tickety-boo

Antonyms

awesome excellent wonderful good mediocre bad disappointing inadequate insufficient poor unsatisfactory unsufficient

This word in other languages

satisfactorio(Español)satisfaisant(Français)befriedigend(Deutsch)satisfatório(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

astisfactory
saitsfactory
satifsactory
satisafctory
satisfacctory
satisfacotry
satisfactorry
satisfactoryy
satisfactoyr
satisfactroy
satisfacttory
satisfatcory
satisfcatory
satisffactory
satissfactory
satsifactory
sattisfactory
ssatisfactory
staisfactory

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

Edit distance from "satisfactory"

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 "satisfactory"?

"satisfactory" is spelled S-A-T-I-S-F-A-C-T-O-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /sætɪsˈfækt(ə)ɹi/.

What does "satisfactory" mean?

As an adjective, "satisfactory" means: Done to satisfaction; adequate or sufficient.

What words are commonly confused with "satisfactory"?

"satisfactory" is commonly confused with "satisfactorily". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "satisfactory"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "satisfactory" is /sætɪsˈfækt(ə)ɹi/. 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 "satisfactory"?

Borrowed from Middle French satisfactoire, from Late Latin satisfactōrius, from Latin satisfactus, past participle of satisfaciō. 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 "satisfactory", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

unauthorized#13,630 inauguration#13,536 chemotherapy#13,680 connectivity#13,690

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (19 here; floor ≥5).

demographics19 variants multinational19 variants distributing19 variants conveniently19 variants