sudo

/ˈsuː.duː/

//ˈsuː.duː// noun

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

"sudo" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sudo” is uncommon English (frequency #57,744 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#57,744
frequency rank, English
54,294
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A Unix command that allows a user to run a program with the security privileges of another user.

Key facts for sudo
PropertyValue
Headwordsudo
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsuː.duː/
Letters4
Frequency rank#57,744
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sudo” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). sudo lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

sudo is uncommon English at frequency #57,744 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsuː.duː/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A Unix command that allows a user to run a program with the security privileges of another user.".

sudo has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Originally understood as a blend of superuser + do, now has evolved to be an abbreviation of substitute user, do. The correct English form is sudo, spelled S-U-D-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    A Unix command that allows a user to run a program with the security privileges of another user.

Etymology

Originally understood as a blend of superuser + do, now has evolved to be an abbreviation of substitute user, do.

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 "sudo"?
"sudo" is spelled S-U-D-O. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsuː.duː/.
What does "sudo" mean?
As a noun, "sudo" means: A Unix command that allows a user to run a program with the security privileges of another user.
How do you pronounce "sudo"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sudo" is /ˈsuː.duː/. 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 "sudo"?
Originally understood as a blend of superuser + do, now has evolved to be an abbreviation of substitute user, do. 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.

Using “sudo”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-U-D-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈsuː.duː/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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