alarming

/əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ/

//əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ// verb

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

"alarming" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“alarming” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #14,262. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#14,262
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of alarm

Corpus desk

Index EN-alarming · alarming · English

alarming · rank #14,262 · 12 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #14,262
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH ala

Nearest frequency peer: ala (-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 “alarming”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “alarming” 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).

alarming vs arming
75% similar
alarming vs awarding
75% similar
alarming vs alarmist
75% similar

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

Key facts for alarming
PropertyValue
Headwordalarming
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#14,262
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “alarming”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).alarminglands 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 “ala” (#14,261), “Alexandra” (#14,263), “almond” (#14,264). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “alarming” is #14,262. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around alarming (IPA /əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #14,262 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of alarm".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for alarming, with forms such as "aalrming", "alamring", and "alarimng". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "arming", "awarding", "alarmist", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct English form is alarming, spelled A-L-A-R-M-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of alarm

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aalrming
  • alamring
  • alarimng
  • alarmign
  • alarmingg
  • alarminng
  • alarmming
  • alarmnig
  • alarrming
  • allarming
  • alraming
  • laarming

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of alarming - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

aalrming2alamring2alarimng2alarmign2alarmingg1alarminng1alarmming1alarmnig2
Edit distance from "alarming"

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 "alarming"?
"alarming" is spelled A-L-A-R-M-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ/.
What does "alarming" mean?
As a verb, "alarming" means: present participle and gerund of alarm
What words are commonly confused with "alarming"?
"alarming" is commonly confused with "arming", "awarding", "alarmist". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "alarming"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alarming" is /əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "alarming" come from?
"alarming" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 "alarming", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

amounted#14,266backbone#14,275vineyard#14,247blizzard#14,278

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

amenities12 variantswaterfall12 variantstweeting12 variantsswiftly12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list