Delapidated or dilapidated?
Did you mean dilapidated? Here's the right spelling and how to remember it.
Incorrect
delapidated
Correct
dilapidated
Correct spelling: dilapidated. Misspelling: delapidated.
letters the misspelling gets wrong or leaves out letters that shouldn't be there
Memory tip
It starts with DI, and "lapid" means stone: di-LAPID-ated.
Why people write “delapidated”
The misspelling “delapidated” is only one letter off: it writes E where dilapidated has I, an easy slip because in an unstressed syllable both vowels can sound like the same soft "uh".
Spell-checkers catch the mistake in a document, but not in a handwritten note, a text message or a word game. Writing the word out a few times while saying the tricky part aloud is the quickest way to make dilapidated automatic.
Other misspellings of “dilapidated”
People also write “dilapadated”. Here is where each one goes wrong.
“dilapadated”
Correct spelling: dilapidated. Misspelling: dilapadated.
letters the misspelling gets wrong or leaves out letters that shouldn't be there
The misspelling “dilapadated” is only one letter off: it writes A where dilapidated has I, an easy slip because in an unstressed syllable both vowels can sound like the same soft "uh".
What does “dilapidated” mean?
dilapidated adjective
- in deplorable condition
“a street of bedraggled tenements”
Definitions from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Full dictionary entry
“Dilapidated” in a sentence
- They bought a dilapidated farmhouse.
- A street of bedraggled tenements.
Is “dilapidated” a playable word?
16 points in Scrabble · 18 in Words With Friends
- Scrabble (US)
- Scrabble (UK)
- Words With Friends
“delapidated” is not accepted in any of these games. See every word you can make from DILAPIDATED.