stars

/stɑɹz/

//stɑɹz// noun

"stars" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“stars” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,471 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#1,471
frequency rank, English
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - plural of star

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

stars vs STR
0% similar
stars vs STS
0% similar
stars vs stay
60% similar

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

Key facts for stars
PropertyValue
Headwordstars
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/stɑɹz/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,471
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “stars” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). stars lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for stars is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /stɑɹz/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,471 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "plural of star".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for stars, with forms such as "satrs", "sstars", and "starrs". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "STR", "STS", "stay", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct English form is stars, spelled S-T-A-R-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    plural of star

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: satrs,sstars,starrs,starss,stasr,stras,sttars,tsars

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

satrs2sstars1starrs1starss1stasr2stras2sttars1tsars2
Edit distance from "stars"

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 "stars"?
"stars" is spelled S-T-A-R-S. The IPA pronunciation is /stɑɹz/.
What does "stars" mean?
As a noun, "stars" means: plural of star
What words are commonly confused with "stars"?
"stars" is commonly confused with "STR", "STS", "stay". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "stars"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "stars" is /stɑɹz/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "stars" come from?
"stars" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

Using “stars”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-T-A-R-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /stɑɹz/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “STR” - see the side-by-side comparison. stars vs STR
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list