stout

/staʊt/

//staʊt// adj

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

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

The verdict

“stout” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,140. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,140
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Large; bulky.

Corpus desk

Index EN-stout · stout · English

stout · rank #16,140 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,140
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH steward

Nearest frequency peer: steward (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “stout”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “stout” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

stout vs Stu
40% similar
stout vs stud
60% similar
stout vs stun
60% similar

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

Key facts for stout
PropertyValue
Headwordstout
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/staʊt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#16,140
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “stout” sits in English frequency

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).stout lands 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. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around stout (IPA /staʊt/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #16,140 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for stout, with forms such as "sotut", "sstout", and "stotu". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Stu", "stud", "stun", 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 stoute, from Old French estout (“brave, fierce, proud”) (Modern French dialectal stout (“proud”)), from earlier Old French estolt (“strong”), from Frankish *stolt, *stult (“bold, proud”), from Proto-Germanic *stultaz (“bold, proud”), fro… The correct English form is stout, spelled S-T-O-U-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Large; bulky.
  2. 2
    Bold, strong-minded.
  3. 3
    Proud; haughty.
  4. 4
    Firm; resolute; dauntless.
  5. 5
    Materially strong, enduring.
  6. 6
    Obstinate.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Yossarian walked out of the office and down the stairs into the dark, tomblike street, passing in the hall the stout woman with warts and two chins, who was already on her way back in.
  2. Art thou but Captaine of a thouſand horſe, That by Characters grauen in thy browes, And by thy martiall face and ſtout aſpect, Deſeru’ſt to haue the leading of an hoſte?

Etymology

From Middle English stoute, from Old French estout (“brave, fierce, proud”) (Modern French dialectal stout (“proud”)), from earlier Old French estolt (“strong”), from Frankish *stolt, *stult (“bold, proud”), from Proto-Germanic *stultaz (“bold, proud”), from Proto-Indo-European *stel- (“to put, stand”). Cognate with Dutch stout (“stout, bold, naughty”), Low German stolt (“stately, proud”), German stolz (“proud, haughty, arrogant, stately”), Old Norse stoltr (“proud”) (Danish stolt (“proud”), Icelandic stoltur (“proud”)). Meaning "strong in body, powerfully built" is attested from First attested in c. 1386, but has been to a large extent displaced by the euphemistic meaning "thick-bodied, fat and large," which is first recorded 1804. Original sense preserved in stout-hearted (1552). The noun "strong, dark-brown beer" is first recorded 1677, from the adjective.

This word in other languages

corpulento(Español)groß(Deutsch)vigoroso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • sotut
  • sstout
  • stotu
  • stoutt
  • sttout
  • stuot
  • tsout

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

sotut2sstout1stotu2stoutt1sttout1stuot2tsout2
Edit distance from "stout"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "stout"?
"stout" is spelled S-T-O-U-T. The IPA pronunciation is /staʊt/.
What does "stout" mean?
As an adjective, "stout" means: Large; bulky.
What words are commonly confused with "stout"?
"stout" is commonly confused with "Stu", "stud", "stun". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "stout"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "stout" is /staʊt/. 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 "stout"?
From Middle English stoute, from Old French estout (“brave, fierce, proud”) (Modern French dialectal stout (“proud”)), from earlier Old French estolt (“strong”), from Frankish *stolt, *stult (“bold, proud”), from Proto-Germanic *stultaz (“bold, pr... 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 "stout", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

stump#16,143Sinai#16,130shaky#16,125Wally#16,163

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

recap7 variantsracer7 variantsnipple7 variantsmould7 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "stout". Here's where to go from here.

  • "stout" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "Stu". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #16,140 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "S" letter cohort. S–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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