violate

/ˈvaɪəˌleɪt/

//ˈvaɪəˌleɪt// verb

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

"violate" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“violate” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #10,477. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#10,477
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To break or disregard (a rule or convention).

Corpus desk

Index EN-violate · violate · English

violate · rank #10,477 · 9 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #10,477
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH vivid

Nearest frequency peer: vivid (+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 “violate”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “violate” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

violate vs violet
71% similar
violate vs violated
88% similar
violate vs viola
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for violate
PropertyValue
Headwordviolate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈvaɪəˌleɪt/
Letters7
Frequency rank#10,477
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “violate”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).violatelands 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 “vivid” (#10,478), “veterinary” (#10,475), “waving” (#10,479). Among 969 “V” headwords, “violate” is #10,477. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around violate (IPA /ˈvaɪəˌleɪt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #10,477 among 969 “V” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for violate, with forms such as "ivolate", "viloate", and "vioalte". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "violet", "violated", "viola", and more, 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 violaten (“to defile, render impure”), from violat(e) (“defiled, desecrated”, also used as the past participle of violaten) + -en, borrowed from Latin violātus, perfect passive participle of violō (“to treat with violence (whether bodily… The correct English form is violate, spelled V-I-O-L-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To break or disregard (a rule or convention).
  2. 2
    To rape.
  3. 3
    To cite (a person) for a parole violation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Drinking-and-driving violates the law.
  2. Accessing unauthorized files violates security protocol.

Etymology

From Middle English violaten (“to defile, render impure”), from violat(e) (“defiled, desecrated”, also used as the past participle of violaten) + -en, borrowed from Latin violātus, perfect passive participle of violō (“to treat with violence (whether bodily or mental)”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix). Ultimately from vīs (“strength, power, force, violence”).

This word in other languages

violar(Español)violer(Français)verletzen(Deutsch)violar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ivolate
  • viloate
  • vioalte
  • violaet
  • violatte
  • viollate
  • violtae
  • voilate
  • vviolate

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of violate - 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.

ivolate2viloate2vioalte2violaet2violatte1viollate1violtae2voilate2
Edit distance from "violate"

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 "violate"?
"violate" is spelled V-I-O-L-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈvaɪəˌleɪt/.
What does "violate" mean?
As a verb, "violate" means: To break or disregard (a rule or convention).
What words are commonly confused with "violate"?
"violate" is commonly confused with "violet", "violated", "viola". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "violate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "violate" is /ˈvaɪəˌleɪt/. 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 "violate"?
From Middle English violaten (“to defile, render impure”), from violat(e) (“defiled, desecrated”, also used as the past participle of violaten) + -en, borrowed from Latin violātus, perfect passive participle of violō (“to treat with violence (whet... 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 "violate", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

utilize#10,473upwards#10,472textile#10,462baggage#10,496

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

waving9 variantsaccusing9 variantsthat'd9 variantstended9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list