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angle

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

5 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "angle", 5-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "angle" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "angle" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

angle is aEnglishnoun. It means: A figure formed by two rays which start from a common point (a plane angle) or by three planes that intersect (a solid angle). Pronounced /ˈæŋ.ɡ(ə)l/. It ranks #3,737 in English word frequency. Often confused with Anne and axle.

Key facts for angle
PropertyValue
Headwordangle
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæŋ.ɡ(ə)l/
Letters5
Frequency rank#3,737
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of angle in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for angle is 5 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈæŋ.ɡ(ə)l/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,737 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text.Wiktionary records 11 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 6 documented wrong-spelling variants for angle, with forms such as "agnle", "anggle", and "anglle". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Anne", "axle", "ante", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂eng- Proto-Indo-European *h₂engulos Proto-Italic *angulos Latin angulusder. Middle French anglebor. Middle English angle English angle From Middle English angle, angul, angule, borrowed from Middle French angle, from La… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is angle, spelled A-N-G-L-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    A figure formed by two rays which start from a common point (a plane angle) or by three planes that intersect (a solid angle).
  2. 2
    The measure of such a figure. In the case of a plane angle, this is the ratio (or proportional to the ratio) of the arc length to the radius of a section of a circle cut by the two rays, centered at their common point. In the case of a solid angle, this is the ratio of the surface area to the square of the radius of the section of a sphere.
  3. 3
    A corner where two walls intersect.
  4. 4
    A change in direction.
  5. 5
    A viewpoint; a way of looking at something.
  6. 6
    The focus of a news story.
  7. 7
    Any of various hesperiid butterflies.
  8. 8
    A storyline between two wrestlers, providing the background for and approach to a feud.
  9. 9
    An ulterior motive; a scheme or means of benefiting from a situation, usually hidden, often immoral.
  10. 10
    A projecting or sharp corner; an angular fragment.
  11. 11
    Any of the four cardinal points of an astrological chart: the Ascendant, the Midheaven, the Descendant and the Imum Coeli.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂eng- Proto-Indo-European *h₂engulos Proto-Italic *angulos Latin angulusder. Middle French anglebor. Middle English angle English angle From Middle English angle, angul, angule, borrowed from Middle French angle, from Latin angulus, anglus (“corner, remote area”). Cognate with Old High German ancha (“nape of the neck”), Middle High German anke (“joint of the foot, nape of neck”). Doublet of angulus and ankle.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: agnle,anggle,anglle,anlge,anngle,nagle

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for angle

Misspelling Variants of "angle"

agnle5anggle6anglle6anlge5anngle6nagle5
Misspelling Variants of "angle"

Frequency rank: #3,737 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "angle"?
"angle" is spelled A-N-G-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæŋ.ɡ(ə)l/.
What does "angle" mean?
As a noun, "angle" means: A figure formed by two rays which start from a common point (a plane angle) or by three planes that intersect (a solid angle).
What words are commonly confused with "angle"?
"angle" is commonly confused with "Anne", "axle", "ante". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "angle"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "angle" is /ˈæŋ.ɡ(ə)l/. 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 "angle"?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂eng- Proto-Indo-European *h₂engulos Proto-Italic *angulos Latin angulusder. Middle French anglebor. Middle English angle English angle From Middle English angle, angul, angule, borrowed from Middle French angl... 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter A in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.