subprime
/ˈsʌb.pɹʌɪm/
"subprime" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“subprime” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #39,591 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #39,591
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Less than prime; inferior.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | subprime |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈsʌb.pɹʌɪm/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #39,591 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “subprime” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for subprime is 8 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsʌb.pɹʌɪm/. Corpus data places it at rank #39,591 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for subprime, with forms such as "sbuprime", "ssubprime", and "subbprime". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "supreme", "surprise", "sublime", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From sub- + prime. The correct English form is subprime, spelled S-U-B-P-R-I-M-E.
Definition
- 1Less than prime; inferior.
- 2Designating a loan (typically at a greater than usual rate of interest) offered to a borrower who is not qualified for other loans (for example, because of a poor credit history).
- 3Designating a type of commercial lending rate, less than the prime rate, offered to desirable borrowers.
Etymology
From sub- + prime.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: sbuprime,ssubprime,subbprime,subpirme,subpprime,subpriem,subprimme,subprmie,subprrime,subrpime,supbrime,usbprime
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of subprime - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "subprime"?
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Using “subprime”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-U-B-P-R-I-M-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈsʌb.pɹʌɪm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “supreme” - see the side-by-side comparison. subprime vs supreme
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.