stele
/ˈstiːli/
"stele" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“stele” is uncommon English (frequency #64,034 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #64,034
- frequency rank, English
- 6,566
- “S” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An upright (or formerly upright) slab containing engraved or painted decorations or inscriptions; a stela.
Corpus desk
Index EN-stele · stele · English
stele · rank #64,034 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #64,034
- LEN-MID 5 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 6,566
- PHOTO-FINISH stix
Nearest frequency peer: stix (+2 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.
Long-tail ranks near “stele”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- SRF
SRF
35,973 corpus weight
- steamroller
steamroller
35,970 corpus weight
- stele
stele
35,967 corpus weight
- stix
stix
35,965 corpus weight
- storer
storer
35,964 corpus weight
- stumping
stumping
35,962 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “stele” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | stele |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈstiːli/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #64,034 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “stele” in English
Rare enough to double-check
stele is uncommon English at frequency #64,034 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈstiːli/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
stele doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Ancient Greek στήλη (stḗlē, “upright rock; pillar; column”), plural form στῆλαι (stêlai). Doublet of stela. The correct English form is stele, spelled S-T-E-L-E.
Definition
- 1An upright (or formerly upright) slab containing engraved or painted decorations or inscriptions; a stela.
- 2Any carved or engraved surface.
- 3An acroterion, the decoration on the ridge of an ancient Greek building such as a temple.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how stele appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
A superior class of members...had their names inscribed upon a marble stélé or column.
It appears, that when any one of the family died, a stelè to his memory was added to the tomb.
Etymology
From Ancient Greek στήλη (stḗlē, “upright rock; pillar; column”), plural form στῆλαι (stêlai). Doublet of stela.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
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
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "stele", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).