turn the other cheek
"turn-the-other-cheek" is a 17-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“turn the other cheek” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 20
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To accept punishment or injury without retaliating.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | turn the other cheek |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| Letters | 20 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “turn the other cheek” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for turn the other cheek is 20 letters long, classified as a verb. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "To accept punishment or injury without retaliating.".
No misspelling variants are generated for turn the other cheek in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: From the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus rejected the eye for an eye philosophy in favour of a more humble approach. The correct English form is turn the other cheek, spelled T-U-R-N- -T-H-E- -O-T-H-E-R- -C-H-E-E-K.
Definition
- 1To accept punishment or injury without retaliating.
Etymology
From the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus rejected the eye for an eye philosophy in favour of a more humble approach.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “turn the other cheek”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-U-R-N- -T-H-E- -O-T-H-E-R- -C-H-E-E-K - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- 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.