unintelligent

/ˌʌnənˈtɛləd͡ʒənt/

//ˌʌnənˈtɛləd͡ʒənt// adj

"unintelligent" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“unintelligent” is uncommon English (frequency #53,934 among 1,433 “U” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#53,934
frequency rank, English
1,433
“U” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Not intelligent.

Corpus desk

Index EN-unintelligent · unintelligent · English

unintelligent · rank #53,934 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #53,934
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,433
  • PHOTO-FINISH unfeasible

Nearest frequency peer: unfeasible (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “unintelligent”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “unintelligent” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for unintelligent
PropertyValue
Headwordunintelligent
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˌʌnənˈtɛləd͡ʒənt/
Letters13
Frequency rank#53,934
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “unintelligent” in English

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).unintelligentfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “unfeasible” (#53,933), “unrecorded” (#53,935), “undignified” (#53,932). Among 1,433 “U” headwords, “unintelligent” is #53,934. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

unintelligent is uncommon English at frequency #53,934 among 1,433 “U” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˌʌnənˈtɛləd͡ʒənt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Not intelligent.".

unintelligent has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From un- + intelligent. The correct English form is unintelligent, spelled U-N-I-N-T-E-L-L-I-G-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Not intelligent.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how unintelligent appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. "That young girl," he added unexpectedly, "is one of the least benightedly unintelligent organic life forms it has been my profound lack of pleasure not to be able to avoid meeting."

Etymology

From un- + intelligent.

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); 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 "unintelligent"?
"unintelligent" is spelled U-N-I-N-T-E-L-L-I-G-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌʌnənˈtɛləd͡ʒənt/.
What does "unintelligent" mean?
As an adjective, "unintelligent" means: Not intelligent.
How do you pronounce "unintelligent"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "unintelligent" is /ˌʌnənˈtɛləd͡ʒənt/. 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 "unintelligent"?
From un- + intelligent. 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 "unintelligent", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 13 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list