speakeasy

noun

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

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

The verdict

“speakeasy” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #48,500. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#48,500
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An illegal saloon or tavern, especially one operated during the American Prohibition period in the 1920s.

Corpus desk

Index EN-speakeasy · speakeasy · English

speakeasy · rank #48,500 · 13 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #48,500
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH spanner

Nearest frequency peer: spanner (-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 “speakeasy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “speakeasy” 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).

speakeasy vs speakers
78% similar

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

Key facts for speakeasy
PropertyValue
Headwordspeakeasy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Frequency rank#48,500
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “speakeasy”

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).speakeasylands 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 “spanner” (#48,499), “specialisation” (#48,501), “southwards” (#48,498). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “speakeasy” is #48,500. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around speakeasy, anoun. Corpus frequency is #48,500 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "An illegal saloon or tavern, especially one operated during the American Prohibition period in the 1920s.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for speakeasy, with forms such as "pseakeasy", "sepakeasy", and "spaekeasy". 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, "speakers", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Deverbal from speak easy (= speak quietly [interj.]); for the history, see Wikipedia at speakeasy § Etymology. The correct English form is speakeasy, spelled S-P-E-A-K-E-A-S-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    An illegal saloon or tavern, especially one operated during the American Prohibition period in the 1920s.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Many of the legitimate nightclubs of today sprang like legalized phoenixes from the still-hot ashes of the speakeasies of prohibition days.
  2. Retuning^([sic]) to Gotham, he came to intimately know Manhattan's speakeasy scene. “At a speakeasy,” Hirschfeld acknowledged, “you had to be known to get in...each place had its own clientele.” Membership cards, really fake IDs, were common.

Etymology

Deverbal from speak easy (= speak quietly [interj.]); for the history, see Wikipedia at speakeasy § Etymology.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • pseakeasy
  • sepakeasy
  • spaekeasy
  • speaekasy
  • speakaesy
  • speakeassy
  • speakeasyy
  • speakeays
  • speakesay
  • speakkeasy
  • spekaeasy
  • sppeakeasy
  • sspeakeasy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

pseakeasy2sepakeasy2spaekeasy2speaekasy2speakaesy2speakeassy1speakeasyy1speakeays2
Edit distance from "speakeasy"

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 "speakeasy"?
"speakeasy" is spelled S-P-E-A-K-E-A-S-Y.
What does "speakeasy" mean?
As a noun, "speakeasy" means: An illegal saloon or tavern, especially one operated during the American Prohibition period in the 1920s.
What words are commonly confused with "speakeasy"?
"speakeasy" is commonly confused with "speakers". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "speakeasy"?
Deverbal from speak easy (= speak quietly [interj.]); for the history, see Wikipedia at speakeasy § Etymology. 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 "speakeasy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

subatomic#48,514Sunnyside#48,519Tannehill#48,521sequencer#48,476

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

solvable13 variantstidewater13 variantsacrylics13 variantsaficionado13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list