translate
/tɹɑːnzˈleɪt/
"translate" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“translate” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,991 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #7,991
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
- 14
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
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 | translate |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /tɹɑːnzˈleɪt/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #7,991 |
| Misspellings tracked | 14 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “translate” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for translate is 9 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /tɹɑːnzˈleɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,991 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 19 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for translate, with forms such as "rtanslate", "tarnslate", and "tranlsate". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "translated", "translator", 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 translaten (“to transport, translate, transform”), from Anglo-Norman translater, from Latin trānslātus, perfect passive participle of trānsferō (“to transport, carry across, translate”). See also -ate (verb-forming suffix). Distant doubl… The correct English form is translate, spelled T-R-A-N-S-L-A-T-E.
Definition
- 1Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 2Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 3Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 4Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 5Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 6Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 7Senses relating to the change of information, etc., from one form to another.
- 8Senses relating to a change of position.
- 9Senses relating to a change of position.
- 10Senses relating to a change of position.
- 11Senses relating to a change of position.
- 12Senses relating to a change of position.
- 13Senses relating to a change of position.
- 14Senses relating to a change of position.
- 15Senses relating to a change of position.
- 16Senses relating to a change of position.
- 17Senses relating to a change of position.
- 18To entrance (“place in a trance”), to cause to lose recollection or sense.
- 19To repair (used shoes, boots or other clothing) for resale.
Etymology
From Middle English translaten (“to transport, translate, transform”), from Anglo-Norman translater, from Latin trānslātus, perfect passive participle of trānsferō (“to transport, carry across, translate”). See also -ate (verb-forming suffix). Distant doublet of transfer, see collate and confer, delate and defer, as well as prelate and prefer among others. In this sense, displaced Old English wendan (“to translate,” also the word for “to turn” and “to change”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: rtanslate,tarnslate,tranlsate,trannslate,transalte,translaet,translatte,transllate,transltae,transslate,trasnlate,trnaslate,trranslate,ttranslate
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of translate - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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 "translate"?
What does "translate" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "translate"?
How do you pronounce "translate"?
What is the origin of the word "translate"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “translate”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-R-A-N-S-L-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /tɹɑːnzˈleɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “translated” - see the side-by-side comparison. translate vs translated
- 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.