slate
/sleɪt/
"slate" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“slate” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,397. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #9,397
- frequency rank, English
- 6,566
- “S” headwords
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A flake or piece of certain types of stone that tend to cleave into thin layers.
Corpus desk
Index EN-slate · slate · English
slate · rank #9,397 · 7 variants · 20 confusables
- FREQ-COMMON #9,397
- LEN-MID 5 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
- VAR-MID 7 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 6,566
- PHOTO-FINISH scent
Nearest frequency peer: scent (-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 “slate”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- revision
revision
90,607 corpus weight
- rooted
rooted
90,606 corpus weight
- scent
scent
90,605 corpus weight
- slate
slate
90,604 corpus weight
- stimulus
stimulus
90,602 corpus weight
- strengtheni…
strengthening
90,601 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “slate” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | slate |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /sleɪt/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #9,397 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “slate” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 7 spelling variants around slate (IPA /sleɪt/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,397 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 12 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for slate, with forms such as "lsate", "salte", and "slaet". 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, "SLE", "slot", "stat", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: The noun is derived from Middle English sclate, slat, slate (“type of rock; roofing slate; writing slate”), from Old French esclate, a feminine form of esclat (“broken piece, shard”) (modern French éclat), from Old French esclater (“to break, shatter”), fro… The correct English form is slate, spelled S-L-A-T-E.
Definition
- 1A flake or piece of certain types of stone that tend to cleave into thin layers.
- 2A flake or piece of certain types of stone that tend to cleave into thin layers.
- 3A generally rectangular piece, originally of certain types of stone and now of other materials, often in a frame, used for writing on with a thin rod of the same or another stone (a slate pencil) or with chalk; a small chalkboard.
- 4Synonym of tablet computer (“a hand-held portable computer in the form of a tablet with a touch screen interface”).
- 5Synonym of clapperboard (“a device consisting of a board on which information about a film being recorded is noted, and a hinged piece which is brought down on the board with a clap at the start and end of each take of the film; it is used to synchronize picture and sound during editing”).
- 6Synonym of clapperboard (“a device consisting of a board on which information about a film being recorded is noted, and a hinged piece which is brought down on the board with a clap at the start and end of each take of the film; it is used to synchronize picture and sound during editing”).
- 7A record, for example, of money owed.
- 8A range of things; also, a schedule.
- 9A collection of films released during a certain period, either from one studio or from a certain film industry (such as Hollywood) as a whole.
- 10A group or list of candidates for appointment or election to an office; also, a group of candidates or electors with affiliated political views.
- 11A fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash which has been metamorphosed so that it cleaves easily into thin layers.
- 12A fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash which has been metamorphosed so that it cleaves easily into thin layers.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how slate appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Some of the minor Welsh 2 ft. gauge railways, we hear from Mr. N. F. G. Dalston, are enjoying a miniature boom owing to the demand for slate for the repair of damaged roofs.
In 1765 only 80 men were employed, and the annual output of slates did not exceed 1,000 tons, and large-scale quarrying was not begun by Lord Penrhyn until 1782.
Etymology
The noun is derived from Middle English sclate, slat, slate (“type of rock; roofing slate; writing slate”), from Old French esclate, a feminine form of esclat (“broken piece, shard”) (modern French éclat), from Old French esclater (“to break, shatter”), from Frankish *slaitijan (“to split, break”), from Proto-Germanic *slaitijaną, the causative of *slītaną (“to cut up, split”); further etymology unknown (see the Proto-Germanic entry for a discussion). Doublet of éclat and slat. The adjective and verb are derived from the noun.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- lsate
- salte
- slaet
- slatte
- sllate
- sltae
- sslate
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of slate - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "slate"?
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "slate", 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 (7 here; floor ≥5).
What to do next
You've looked up "slate". Here's where to go from here.
- "slate" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "SLE". View pair
- 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
- Usage frequency rank #9,397 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.