welfare state
"welfare-state" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“welfare state” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 13
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A social system in which the state takes overall responsibility for the welfare of its citizens, providing health care, education, unemployment benefits and social security.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | welfare state |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 13 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “welfare state” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
welfare state is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
welfare state has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: Compound of welfare + state. The correct English form is welfare state, spelled W-E-L-F-A-R-E- -S-T-A-T-E.
Definition
- 1A social system in which the state takes overall responsibility for the welfare of its citizens, providing health care, education, unemployment benefits and social security.
- 2A country in which such a system operates.
Etymology
Compound of welfare + state.
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 “welfare state”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is W-E-L-F-A-R-E- -S-T-A-T-E - 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.