syphilis

/ˈsɪfɪlɪs/

//ˈsɪfɪlɪs// noun

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

"syphilis" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“syphilis” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #25,606. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#25,606
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
13
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A disease spread via sexual activity, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum.

Corpus desk

Index EN-syphilis · syphilis · English

syphilis · rank #25,606 · 13 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #25,606
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Syd

Nearest frequency peer: Syd (-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 “syphilis”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “syphilis” 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
Key facts for syphilis
PropertyValue
Headwordsyphilis
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsɪfɪlɪs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#25,606
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “syphilis”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).syphilislands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Syd” (#25,605), “T3” (#25,607), “tabletop” (#25,608). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “syphilis” is #25,606. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around syphilis (IPA /ˈsɪfɪlɪs/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #25,606 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A disease spread via sexual activity, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for syphilis, with forms such as "spyhilis", "ssyphilis", and "syhpilis". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin syphilis, originally the title of a poem by Girolamo Fracastoro concerning “Syphilus”, a shepherd boy who insulted the Greek god Apollo and was punished by that god with a horrible disease. The correct English form is syphilis, spelled S-Y-P-H-I-L-I-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    A disease spread via sexual activity, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum.

Etymology

From New Latin syphilis, originally the title of a poem by Girolamo Fracastoro concerning “Syphilus”, a shepherd boy who insulted the Greek god Apollo and was punished by that god with a horrible disease.

This word in other languages

sífilis(Español)syphilis(Français)Syphilis(Deutsch)sífilis(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • spyhilis
  • ssyphilis
  • syhpilis
  • syphhilis
  • syphiils
  • syphiliss
  • syphillis
  • syphilsi
  • syphliis
  • sypihlis
  • sypphilis
  • syyphilis
  • ysphilis

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

spyhilis2ssyphilis1syhpilis2syphhilis1syphiils2syphiliss1syphillis1syphilsi2
Edit distance from "syphilis"

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 "syphilis"?
"syphilis" is spelled S-Y-P-H-I-L-I-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɪfɪlɪs/.
What does "syphilis" mean?
As a noun, "syphilis" means: A disease spread via sexual activity, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum.
What are common misspellings of "syphilis"?
Common misspellings include "spyhilis", "ssyphilis", "syhpilis", "syphhilis", "syphiils". The correct spelling is "syphilis".
How do you pronounce "syphilis"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "syphilis" is /ˈsɪfɪlɪs/. 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 "syphilis"?
From New Latin syphilis, originally the title of a poem by Girolamo Fracastoro concerning “Syphilus”, a shepherd boy who insulted the Greek god Apollo and was punished by that god with a horrible disease. 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 "syphilis", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

tabletop#25,608subtract#25,600tingling#25,616sparsely#25,589

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

slowdown13 variantsviolinist13 variantsanxiously13 variantsatonement13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list