acetone

/ˈæ.sə.toʊn/

//ˈæ.sə.toʊn// noun

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

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

The verdict

“acetone” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #37,307. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#37,307
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A colourless, volatile, flammable liquid ketone, (CH₃)₂CO, used as a solvent.

Corpus desk

Index EN-acetone · acetone · English

acetone · rank #37,307 · 9 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #37,307
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH Abingdon

Nearest frequency peer: Abingdon (-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 “acetone”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “acetone” 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).

acetone vs acton
71% similar
acetone vs atone
71% similar
acetone vs anemone
71% similar

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

Key facts for acetone
PropertyValue
Headwordacetone
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæ.sə.toʊn/
Letters7
Frequency rank#37,307
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “acetone”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Abingdon” (#37,306), “actuarial” (#37,308), “aam” (#37,305). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “acetone” is #37,307. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around acetone (IPA /ˈæ.sə.toʊn/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #37,307 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A colourless, volatile, flammable liquid ketone, (CH₃)₂CO, used as a solvent.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for acetone, with forms such as "accetone", "aceotne", and "acetnoe". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "acton", "atone", "anemone", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From acet- from acētum (“vinegar”). The -one was taken from margarone but further etymology is unclear. Doublet of ketone. The correct English form is acetone, spelled A-C-E-T-O-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A colourless, volatile, flammable liquid ketone, (CH₃)₂CO, used as a solvent.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. You open the salon door and the acetone from yesterday’s manicures immediately stings my nostrils.

Etymology

From acet- from acētum (“vinegar”). The -one was taken from margarone but further etymology is unclear. Doublet of ketone.

This word in other languages

acetona(Español)acétone(Français)Aceton(Deutsch)acetona(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • accetone
  • aceotne
  • acetnoe
  • acetoen
  • acetonne
  • acettone
  • acteone
  • aectone
  • caetone

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

accetone1aceotne2acetnoe2acetoen2acetonne1acettone1acteone2aectone2
Edit distance from "acetone"

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 "acetone"?
"acetone" is spelled A-C-E-T-O-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæ.sə.toʊn/.
What does "acetone" mean?
As a noun, "acetone" means: A colourless, volatile, flammable liquid ketone, (CH₃)₂CO, used as a solvent.
What words are commonly confused with "acetone"?
"acetone" is commonly confused with "acton", "atone", "anemone". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "acetone"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "acetone" is /ˈæ.sə.toʊn/. 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 "acetone"?
From acet- from acētum (“vinegar”). The -one was taken from margarone but further etymology is unclear. Doublet of ketone. 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 "acetone", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

auguste#37,326Bacchus#37,331barrack#37,334vocally#37,277

Similar misspelling depth

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

Womack9 variantsWeldon9 variantsbantam9 variantsbarked9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list