sunder

/ˈsʌndɚ/

//ˈsʌndɚ// adj

"sunder" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sunder” is an uncommon English word, ranked #55,129 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#55,129
frequency rank, English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Sundry; separate; different.

Key facts for sunder
PropertyValue
Headwordsunder
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈsʌndɚ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#55,129
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sunder” 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). sunder lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for sunder is 6 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsʌndɚ/. Corpus data places it at rank #55,129 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Sundry; separate; different.".

No misspelling variants are generated for sunder in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English sunder, from Old English sundor- (“separate, different”), from Proto-Germanic *sundraz (“isolated, particular, alone”), from Proto-Indo-European *snter-, *seni-, *senu-, *san- (“apart, without, for oneself”). Cognate with Old Saxon sunda… The correct English form is sunder, spelled S-U-N-D-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sundry; separate; different.

Etymology

From Middle English sunder, from Old English sundor- (“separate, different”), from Proto-Germanic *sundraz (“isolated, particular, alone”), from Proto-Indo-European *snter-, *seni-, *senu-, *san- (“apart, without, for oneself”). Cognate with Old Saxon sundar (“particular, special”), Dutch zonder (“without”), German sonder- (“special”), German sondern (“to separate, set apart”), Old Norse sundr (“separate”), Danish sønder (“apart, asunder”), Latin sine (“without”).

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 "sunder"?
"sunder" is spelled S-U-N-D-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsʌndɚ/.
What does "sunder" mean?
As an adjective, "sunder" means: Sundry; separate; different.
How do you pronounce "sunder"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sunder" is /ˈsʌndɚ/. 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 "sunder"?
From Middle English sunder, from Old English sundor- (“separate, different”), from Proto-Germanic *sundraz (“isolated, particular, alone”), from Proto-Indo-European *snter-, *seni-, *senu-, *san- (“apart, without, for oneself”). Cognate with Old S... 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 “sunder”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is S-U-N-D-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈsʌndɚ/ (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
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list