startup

/ˈstɑɹtˌʌp/

//ˈstɑɹtˌʌp// noun

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

"startup" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“startup” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,256. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,256
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act or process of starting a process or machine.

Corpus desk

Index EN-startup · startup · English

startup · rank #9,256 · 11 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,256
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH staged

Nearest frequency peer: staged (-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 “startup”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “startup” 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).

startup vs status
71% similar
startup vs statue
71% similar
startup vs start
71% similar

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

Key facts for startup
PropertyValue
Headwordstartup
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈstɑɹtˌʌp/
Letters7
Frequency rank#9,256
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “startup”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).startuplands 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 “staged” (#9,255), “statute” (#9,257), “sorted” (#9,253). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “startup” is #9,256. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around startup (IPA /ˈstɑɹtˌʌp/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,256 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for startup, with forms such as "satrtup", "sstartup", and "starrtup". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "status", "statue", "start", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Deverbal from start up. The correct English form is startup, spelled S-T-A-R-T-U-P.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act or process of starting a process or machine.
  2. 2
    A new company or organization or business venture designed for rapid growth.
  3. 3
    A folder (especially in Windows), containing shortcuts of applications or programs that start up automatically after a user signs in.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Since the launch early last year of Udacity and Coursera, two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations. University brands built in some cases over centuries have been forced to contemplate the possibility that information technology will…
  2. Add an app to run automatically at startup in Windows 10, Microsoft Support 3. With the file location open, press the Windows logo key + R, type shell:startup, then select OK. This opens the Startup folder. / 4. Copy and paste the shortcut to the app from the file location to the Startup folder.

Etymology

Deverbal from start up.

This word in other languages

arranque(Español)mise en route(Français)Inbetriebnahme(Deutsch)startup(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • satrtup
  • sstartup
  • starrtup
  • startpu
  • starttup
  • startupp
  • starutp
  • statrup
  • stratup
  • sttartup
  • tsartup

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

satrtup2sstartup1starrtup1startpu2starttup1startupp1starutp2statrup2
Edit distance from "startup"

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 "startup"?
"startup" is spelled S-T-A-R-T-U-P. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstɑɹtˌʌp/.
What does "startup" mean?
As a noun, "startup" means: The act or process of starting a process or machine.
What words are commonly confused with "startup"?
"startup" is commonly confused with "status", "statue", "start". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "startup"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "startup" is /ˈstɑɹtˌʌp/. 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 "startup"?
Deverbal from start up. 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 "startup", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

statute#9,257sinking#9,251simpler#9,250thieves#9,264

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

sickness11 variantsremedies11 variantsVikings11 variantspunched11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list