steeple

/ˈstiːpəl/

//ˈstiːpəl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“steeple” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #40,034. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#40,034
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A tall tower, often on a church, normally topped with a spire.

Corpus desk

Index EN-steeple · steeple · English

steeple · rank #40,034 · 10 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #40,034
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH steen

Nearest frequency peer: steen (-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 “steeple”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “steeple” 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).

steeple vs steppe
71% similar
steeple vs sterile
71% similar
steeple vs steeply
86% similar

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

Key facts for steeple
PropertyValue
Headwordsteeple
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈstiːpəl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#40,034
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “steeple”

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).steeplelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “steen” (#40,033), “sth” (#40,035), “stig” (#40,036). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “steeple” is #40,034. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around steeple (IPA /ˈstiːpəl/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #40,034 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for steeple, with forms such as "seteple", "ssteeple", and "steelpe". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "steppe", "sterile", "steeply", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English stepel, from Old English stīpel, stȳpel, stīepel (“tower, steeple”), from Proto-West Germanic *staupil, from Proto-Germanic *staupilaz (“that which is steep, tower, steeple”), equivalent to steep + -le. Cognate with Old Norse stǫpull (“t… The correct English form is steeple, spelled S-T-E-E-P-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A tall tower, often on a church, normally topped with a spire.
  2. 2
    A spire.
  3. 3
    A high headdress of the 14th century.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Above the session-room of the Council is the steeple, and in the steeple is the belfry, where exists, and has existed time out of mind, the pride and wonder of the village—the great clock of the borough of Vondervotteimittiss.
  2. So, the woman and the child had gone by, and gone on, and five had sounded from the steeples.

Etymology

From Middle English stepel, from Old English stīpel, stȳpel, stīepel (“tower, steeple”), from Proto-West Germanic *staupil, from Proto-Germanic *staupilaz (“that which is steep, tower, steeple”), equivalent to steep + -le. Cognate with Old Norse stǫpull (“tower, steeple”).

This word in other languages

campanario(Español)clocher(Français)Kirchturm(Deutsch)campanário(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • seteple
  • ssteeple
  • steelpe
  • steepel
  • steeplle
  • steepple
  • stepele
  • steple
  • stteeple
  • tseeple

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

seteple2ssteeple1steelpe2steepel2steeplle1steepple1stepele2steple1
Edit distance from "steeple"

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 "steeple"?
"steeple" is spelled S-T-E-E-P-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstiːpəl/.
What does "steeple" mean?
As a noun, "steeple" means: A tall tower, often on a church, normally topped with a spire.
What words are commonly confused with "steeple"?
"steeple" is commonly confused with "steppe", "sterile", "steeply". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "steeple"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "steeple" is /ˈstiːpəl/. 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 "steeple"?
From Middle English stepel, from Old English stīpel, stȳpel, stīepel (“tower, steeple”), from Proto-West Germanic *staupil, from Proto-Germanic *staupilaz (“that which is steep, tower, steeple”), equivalent to steep + -le. Cognate with Old Norse s... 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 "steeple", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Sturgis#40,038Shatner#40,018seeping#40,013rosette#40,001

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

Thaddeus10 variantsWooster10 variantsProteus10 variantsportico10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list