alone

/əˈləʊn/

//əˈləʊn// adj

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

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

The verdict

“alone” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #703. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#703
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - By oneself, solitary.

Corpus desk

Index EN-alone · alone · English

alone · rank #703 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #703
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH AL

Nearest frequency peer: AL (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “alone”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “alone” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

alone vs Anne
40% similar
alone vs alot
60% similar
alone vs Avon
40% similar

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

Key facts for alone
PropertyValue
Headwordalone
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/əˈləʊn/
Letters5
Frequency rank#703
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “alone” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).alonelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “AL” (#702), “average” (#704), “added” (#701). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around alone (IPA /əˈləʊn/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #703 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for alone, with forms such as "allone", "alnoe", and "aloen". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Anne", "alot", "Avon", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English allone, from earlier all oon (“alone”, literally “all one”), contracted from the Old English phrase eall ān (“completely alone”), equivalent to al- (“all”) + one. Cognate with Scots alane (“alone”), Saterland Frisian alleene (“alone”), W… The correct English form is alone, spelled A-L-O-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    By oneself, solitary.
  2. 2
    By oneself, solitary.
  3. 3
    Lacking peers who share one's beliefs, experiences, practices, etc.
  4. 4
    Apart from, or exclusive of, others.
  5. 5
    Mere; consisting of nothing further.
  6. 6
    Unique; rare; matchless.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I can't ask for help because I am alone.
  2. It is not good that the man should be alone.

Etymology

From Middle English allone, from earlier all oon (“alone”, literally “all one”), contracted from the Old English phrase eall ān (“completely alone”), equivalent to al- (“all”) + one. Cognate with Scots alane (“alone”), Saterland Frisian alleene (“alone”), West Frisian allinne (“alone”), Dutch alleen (“alone”), Low German alleen (“alone”), German allein (“alone”), Danish alene (“alone”), Swedish allena (“alone”). More at all and one. Regarding the different phonological development of alone and one, see the note in one.

This word in other languages

solo(Español)seul(Français)allein(Deutsch)sozinho(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • allone
  • alnoe
  • aloen
  • alonne
  • aolne
  • laone

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

allone1alnoe2aloen2alonne1aolne2laone2
Edit distance from "alone"

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 "alone"?
"alone" is spelled A-L-O-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈləʊn/.
What does "alone" mean?
As an adjective, "alone" means: By oneself, solitary.
What words are commonly confused with "alone"?
"alone" is commonly confused with "Anne", "alot", "Avon". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "alone"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alone" is /əˈləʊn/. 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 "alone"?
From Middle English allone, from earlier all oon (“alone”, literally “all one”), contracted from the Old English phrase eall ān (“completely alone”), equivalent to al- (“all”) + one. Cognate with Scots alane (“alone”), Saterland Frisian alleene (“... 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 "alone", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

added#701learn#698hands#710guess#694

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

bank6 variantsking6 variantsJuly6 variantsgold6 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "alone". Here's where to go from here.

  • "alone" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "Anne". View pair
  • 6 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #703 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "A" letter cohort. A–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list