steroid

/ˈstɛɹɔɪd/

//ˈstɛɹɔɪd// noun

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

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

The verdict

“steroid” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,963. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,963
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A class of organic compounds having a structure of 17 carbon atoms arranged in four rings; they are lipids, and occur naturally as sterols, bile acids, adrenal and sex hormones, and some vitamins; ...

Corpus desk

Index EN-steroid · steroid · English

steroid · rank #18,963 · 10 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #18,963
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Staffordshire

Nearest frequency peer: Staffordshire (-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 “steroid”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “steroid” 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).

steroid vs Stroud
57% similar

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

Key facts for steroid
PropertyValue
Headwordsteroid
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈstɛɹɔɪd/
Letters7
Frequency rank#18,963
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “steroid”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).steroidlands 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 “Staffordshire” (#18,962), “spoils” (#18,961), “surveying” (#18,965). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “steroid” is #18,963. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around steroid (IPA /ˈstɛɹɔɪd/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #18,963 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for steroid, with forms such as "setroid", "ssteroid", and "steorid". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Stroud", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sterol + -oid. The correct English form is steroid, spelled S-T-E-R-O-I-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A class of organic compounds having a structure of 17 carbon atoms arranged in four rings; they are lipids, and occur naturally as sterols, bile acids, adrenal and sex hormones, and some vitamins; many drugs are synthetic steroids.
  2. 2
    Any anabolic hormone used to promote muscle growth or athletic performance.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Men may also have fertility challenges, especially if their hypogonadism was caused by anabolic steroid use. Anabolic steroids can affect testicular health, including reducing the production of sperm.

Etymology

From sterol + -oid.

Synonyms

steroid

This word in other languages

stéroïde(Français)Steroid(Deutsch)esteroide(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • setroid
  • ssteroid
  • steorid
  • steriod
  • sterodi
  • steroidd
  • sterroid
  • streoid
  • stteroid
  • tseroid

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

setroid2ssteroid1steorid2steriod2sterodi2steroidd1sterroid1streoid2
Edit distance from "steroid"

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 "steroid"?
"steroid" is spelled S-T-E-R-O-I-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstɛɹɔɪd/.
What does "steroid" mean?
As a noun, "steroid" means: A class of organic compounds having a structure of 17 carbon atoms arranged in four rings; they are lipids, and occur naturally as sterols, bile acids, adrenal and sex hormones, and some vitamins; ...
What words are commonly confused with "steroid"?
"steroid" is commonly confused with "Stroud". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "steroid"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "steroid" is /ˈstɛɹɔɪd/. 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 "steroid"?
From sterol + -oid. 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 "steroid", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

slogans#18,956siemens#18,954toaster#18,975uncanny#18,981

Similar misspelling depth

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

rotated10 variantsvoyager10 variantsPhyllis10 variantsMorales10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list