worst

/wɜːst/

//wɜːst// adj

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

"worst" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“worst” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,259. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,259
frequency rank, English
1,759
“W” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - superlative form of bad: most bad

Corpus desk

Index EN-worst · worst · English

worst · rank #1,259 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,259
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,759
  • PHOTO-FINISH wonder

Nearest frequency peer: wonder (-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 “worst”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “worst” 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).

worst vs wot
60% similar
worst vs writ
60% similar
worst vs wort
80% similar

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

Key facts for worst
PropertyValue
Headwordworst
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/wɜːst/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,259
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “worst”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).worstlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “wonder” (#1,258), “Africa” (#1,260), “weekend” (#1,257). Among 1,759 “W” headwords, “worst” is #1,259. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around worst (IPA /wɜːst/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #1,259 among 1,759 “W” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for worst, with forms such as "owrst", "worrst", and "worsst". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "wot", "writ", "wort", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English worste, wurste, warste, werste, wirste, from Old English wierrest, from Proto-Germanic *wirsistaz, superlative form of *ubilaz (“bad, evil”); compare worse. Cognate with Old Saxon wirsista, wirrista (“worst”), Old High German wirst, wirs… The correct English form is worst, spelled W-O-R-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    superlative form of bad: most bad
  2. 2
    superlative form of bad: most bad
  3. 3
    superlative form of bad: most bad
  4. 4
    superlative form of bad: most bad

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I think putting oil on a burn is the worst thing you can do.
  2. That's the worst news I've had all day.

Etymology

From Middle English worste, wurste, warste, werste, wirste, from Old English wierrest, from Proto-Germanic *wirsistaz, superlative form of *ubilaz (“bad, evil”); compare worse. Cognate with Old Saxon wirsista, wirrista (“worst”), Old High German wirst, wirsesto, wirsisto (“worst”), Danish værst (“worst”), Swedish värst (“worst”), Icelandic verstur (“worst”).

Synonyms

baddestpessimal

Antonyms

bestoptimal

This word in other languages

peor(Español)pire(Français)schlechteste(Deutsch)pior(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • owrst
  • worrst
  • worsst
  • worstt
  • worts
  • wosrt
  • wrost
  • wworst

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of worst - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

owrst2worrst1worsst1worstt1worts2wosrt2wrost2wworst1
Edit distance from "worst"

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 "worst"?
"worst" is spelled W-O-R-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is /wɜːst/.
What does "worst" mean?
As an adjective, "worst" means: superlative form of bad: most bad
What words are commonly confused with "worst"?
"worst" is commonly confused with "wot", "writ", "wort". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "worst"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "worst" is /wɜːst/. 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 "worst"?
From Middle English worste, wurste, warste, werste, wirste, from Old English wierrest, from Proto-Germanic *wirsistaz, superlative form of *ubilaz (“bad, evil”); compare worse. Cognate with Old Saxon wirsista, wirrista (“worst”), Old High German w... 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 "worst", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

trump#1,256beach#1,263stock#1,255ended#1,269

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Africa8 variantsdance8 variantsactive8 variantssenior8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list