uppity

/ˈʌpəti/

//ˈʌpəti// adj

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

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

The verdict

“uppity” is uncommon English (frequency #54,553 among 1,433 “U” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#54,553
frequency rank, English
1,433
“U” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Presumptuous, above oneself, self-important; arrogant, snobbish, haughty.

Corpus desk

Index EN-uppity · uppity · English

uppity · rank #54,553 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #54,553
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,433
  • PHOTO-FINISH unreservedly

Nearest frequency peer: unreservedly (-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 “uppity”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for uppity
PropertyValue
Headworduppity
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈʌpəti/
Letters6
Frequency rank#54,553
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “uppity” 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).uppityfalls 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: “unreservedly” (#54,552), “upturn” (#54,554), “unmask” (#54,551). Among 1,433 “U” headwords, “uppity” is #54,553. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

uppity is uncommon English at frequency #54,553 among 1,433 “U” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈʌpəti/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for uppity in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier uppedy, equivalent to up + -ed + -y; compare blackity, biggity, and hippity (and possibly also persnickety, pernickety). First attested around 1880 in Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris to describe Jack Sparrer (Jack Sparrow), who tattled on B… The correct English form is uppity, spelled U-P-P-I-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Presumptuous, above oneself, self-important; arrogant, snobbish, haughty.
  2. 2
    Exceeding one's station or position, assuming prerogatives to which one is not entitled.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. "Hit wuz wunner dese yer uppity little Jack Sparrers, I speck," said the old man; "dey wuz allers bodder'n' longer udder fokes's bizness
  2. And the Yankees are very upset because so many uppity darkies have been killed recently.

Etymology

From earlier uppedy, equivalent to up + -ed + -y; compare blackity, biggity, and hippity (and possibly also persnickety, pernickety). First attested around 1880 in Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris to describe Jack Sparrer (Jack Sparrow), who tattled on Br'er Rabbit (see quotations below). Compare uppish.

This word in other languages

arrogant(Français)dreist(Deutsch)

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 "uppity"?
"uppity" is spelled U-P-P-I-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʌpəti/.
What does "uppity" mean?
As an adjective, "uppity" means: Presumptuous, above oneself, self-important; arrogant, snobbish, haughty.
How do you pronounce "uppity"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "uppity" is /ˈʌpəti/. 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 "uppity"?
From earlier uppedy, equivalent to up + -ed + -y; compare blackity, biggity, and hippity (and possibly also persnickety, pernickety). First attested around 1880 in Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris to describe Jack Sparrer (Jack Sparrow), who ta... 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 "uppity", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

upturn#54,554unmask#54,551witney#54,572yessir#54,579

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list