spiteful

/ˈspaɪtfʊl/

//ˈspaɪtfʊl// adj

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

"spiteful" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“spiteful” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #32,190. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#32,190
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
12
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Filled with, or showing, spite; having a desire to annoy or harm.

Corpus desk

Index EN-spiteful · spiteful · English

spiteful · rank #32,190 · 12 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #32,190
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH spangled

Nearest frequency peer: spangled (-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 “spiteful”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “spiteful” 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
Key facts for spiteful
PropertyValue
Headwordspiteful
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈspaɪtfʊl/
Letters8
Frequency rank#32,190
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “spiteful”

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).spitefullands 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 “spangled” (#32,189), “soulmate” (#32,188), “sporadically” (#32,192). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “spiteful” is #32,190. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around spiteful (IPA /ˈspaɪtfʊl/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #32,190 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Filled with, or showing, spite; having a desire to annoy or harm.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for spiteful, with forms such as "psiteful", "sipteful", and "spietful". 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. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English spytefulle. By surface analysis, spite + -ful. The correct English form is spiteful, spelled S-P-I-T-E-F-U-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Filled with, or showing, spite; having a desire to annoy or harm.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. It's not like you killed someone It's not like you drove a spiteful spear into his side Talk to Jesus Christ as if he knows the reasons why He did it all for you

Etymology

From Middle English spytefulle. By surface analysis, spite + -ful.

This word in other languages

malévolo(Español)rancunier(Français)gehässig(Deutsch)rancoroso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • psiteful
  • sipteful
  • spietful
  • spitefful
  • spiteflu
  • spitefull
  • spiteufl
  • spitfeul
  • spitteful
  • sppiteful
  • sptieful
  • sspiteful

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

psiteful2sipteful2spietful2spitefful1spiteflu2spitefull1spiteufl2spitfeul2
Edit distance from "spiteful"

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 "spiteful"?
"spiteful" is spelled S-P-I-T-E-F-U-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈspaɪtfʊl/.
What does "spiteful" mean?
As an adjective, "spiteful" means: Filled with, or showing, spite; having a desire to annoy or harm.
What are common misspellings of "spiteful"?
Common misspellings include "psiteful", "sipteful", "spietful", "spitefful", "spiteflu". The correct spelling is "spiteful".
How do you pronounce "spiteful"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spiteful" is /ˈspaɪtfʊl/. 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 "spiteful"?
From Middle English spytefulle. By surface analysis, spite + -ful. 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 "spiteful", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

spangled#32,189soulmate#32,188slimming#32,185selenium#32,174

Similar misspelling depth

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

summation12 variantstiredness12 variantsSandoval12 variantsRohingya12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list