sleepless

/ˈsliːpləs/

//ˈsliːpləs// adj

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

"sleepless" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sleepless” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #23,104. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#23,104
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Characterized by an absence of sleep: wakeful.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sleepless · sleepless · English

sleepless · rank #23,104 · 12 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #23,104
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH slashed

Nearest frequency peer: slashed (-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 “sleepless”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “sleepless” 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).

sleepless vs sleeveless
80% similar
sleepless vs sleepiness
80% similar

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

Key facts for sleepless
PropertyValue
Headwordsleepless
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈsliːpləs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#23,104
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “sleepless”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).sleeplesslands 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 “slashed” (#23,103), “slur” (#23,105), “slant” (#23,102). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sleepless” is #23,104. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around sleepless (IPA /ˈsliːpləs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #23,104 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Characterized by an absence of sleep: wakeful.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for sleepless, with forms such as "lseepless", "selepless", and "sleelpess". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "sleeveless", "sleepiness", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English slepeles, from Old English slǣplēas; equivalent to sleep + -less. The correct English form is sleepless, spelled S-L-E-E-P-L-E-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Characterized by an absence of sleep: wakeful.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. I spent a sleepless night worrying about the exams.

Etymology

From Middle English slepeles, from Old English slǣplēas; equivalent to sleep + -less.

Antonyms

wakeless

This word in other languages

desvelado(Español)insomniaque(Français)schlaflos(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • lseepless
  • selepless
  • sleelpess
  • sleepelss
  • sleeples
  • sleeplless
  • sleeplses
  • sleeppless
  • slepeless
  • slepless
  • slleepless
  • ssleepless

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sleepless - 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.

lseepless2selepless2sleelpess2sleepelss2sleeples1sleeplless1sleeplses2sleeppless1
Edit distance from "sleepless"

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 "sleepless"?
"sleepless" is spelled S-L-E-E-P-L-E-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsliːpləs/.
What does "sleepless" mean?
As an adjective, "sleepless" means: Characterized by an absence of sleep: wakeful.
What words are commonly confused with "sleepless"?
"sleepless" is commonly confused with "sleeveless", "sleepiness". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sleepless"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sleepless" is /ˈsliːpləs/. 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 "sleepless"?
From Middle English slepeles, from Old English slǣplēas; equivalent to sleep + -less. 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 "sleepless", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

tampering#23,123repulsive#23,083popularly#23,070plastered#23,066

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

sadistic12 variantsterminus12 variantsturnpike12 variantswaterway12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list