siesta

/siˈɛstə/

//siˈɛstə// noun

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

"siesta" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“siesta” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #47,333. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#47,333
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A nap, especially an afternoon one taken during the hottest part of the day in some cultures.

Corpus desk

Index EN-siesta · siesta · English

siesta · rank #47,333 · 8 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #47,333
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Sikkim

Nearest frequency peer: Sikkim (+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 “siesta”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “siesta” 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).

siesta vs Sita
50% similar
siesta vs Silesia
57% similar
siesta vs Siena
50% similar

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

Key facts for siesta
PropertyValue
Headwordsiesta
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/siˈɛstə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#47,333
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “siesta”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).siestalands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Sikkim” (#47,334), “Sinhalese” (#47,335), “sheaf” (#47,330). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “siesta” is #47,333. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around siesta (IPA /siˈɛstə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #47,333 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for siesta, with forms such as "isesta", "seista", and "siesat". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "Sita", "Silesia", "Siena", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Spanish siesta, from Latin sexta (“the sixth hour from dawn, noon, midday”). Doublet of sext. The correct English form is siesta, spelled S-I-E-S-T-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A nap, especially an afternoon one taken during the hottest part of the day in some cultures.
  2. 2
    Laid-back attitudes to work or laziness, especially by a Hispanic person.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. One humid afternoon a visitor did arrive to disturb Rottcodd as he lay deeply hammocked, for his siesta was broken sharply by a rattling of the door handle […]
  2. When it's time for siesta, you can watch them go by / Beautiful faces, no cares in this world

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish siesta, from Latin sexta (“the sixth hour from dawn, noon, midday”). Doublet of sext.

Synonyms

shut-eyemañana

This word in other languages

siesta(Español)sieste(Français)Mittagsruhe(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • isesta
  • seista
  • siesat
  • siessta
  • siestta
  • sietsa
  • siseta
  • ssiesta

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

isesta2seista2siesat2siessta1siestta1sietsa2siseta2ssiesta1
Edit distance from "siesta"

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 "siesta"?
"siesta" is spelled S-I-E-S-T-A. The IPA pronunciation is /siˈɛstə/.
What does "siesta" mean?
As a noun, "siesta" means: A nap, especially an afternoon one taken during the hottest part of the day in some cultures.
What words are commonly confused with "siesta"?
"siesta" is commonly confused with "Sita", "Silesia", "Siena". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "siesta"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "siesta" is /siˈɛstə/. 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 "siesta"?
Borrowed from Spanish siesta, from Latin sexta (“the sixth hour from dawn, noon, midday”). Doublet of sext. 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 "siesta", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Sikkim#47,334señora#47,327scruff#47,322staves#47,350

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

scrip8 variantsSaipan8 variantsRiemann8 variantsreheat8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list