awaken

/əˈweɪkən/

//əˈweɪkən// verb

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

"awaken" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“awaken” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,244. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,244
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To cause to become awake.

Corpus desk

Index EN-awaken · awaken · English

awaken · rank #18,244 · 8 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,244
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH authentication

Nearest frequency peer: authentication (-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 “awaken”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “awaken” 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).

awaken vs aware
67% similar
awaken vs awoke
67% similar
awaken vs awoken
83% similar

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

Key facts for awaken
PropertyValue
Headwordawaken
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈweɪkən/
Letters6
Frequency rank#18,244
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “awaken”

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).awakenlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “authentication” (#18,243), “azure” (#18,245), “Astros” (#18,242). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “awaken” is #18,244. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around awaken (IPA /əˈweɪkən/), averb. Corpus frequency is #18,244 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for awaken, with forms such as "aawken", "awaekn", and "awakenn". 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 8 confusable-pair relationships, "aware", "awoke", "awoken", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English awakenen or awaknen, from Old English awæcnan or awæcnian, from a- plus wæcnan or wæcnian. The correct English form is awaken, spelled A-W-A-K-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To cause to become awake.
  2. 2
    To stop sleeping; awake.
  3. 3
    To bring into action (something previously dormant); to stimulate.
  4. 4
    To call to a sense of sin.
  5. 5
    past participle of awake
  6. 6
    To cause to become aware.
  7. 7
    To become aware.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Be careful how you touch her, she'll awaken / As sleep's the only freedom all that she knows / And when you walk into her eyes, you won't believe / The way she's always paying for a debt she never owes
  2. Each morning he awakens with a smile on his face.

Etymology

From Middle English awakenen or awaknen, from Old English awæcnan or awæcnian, from a- plus wæcnan or wæcnian.

Synonyms

arouseawakeawakenbring roundcryknock uprouseroustuprousewakewake upwaken

Antonyms

anesthetizebelullcradleknock outlullput downput to sleep

This word in other languages

despertar(Español)réveiller(Français)aufwecken(Deutsch)acordar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aawken
  • awaekn
  • awakenn
  • awakken
  • awakne
  • awkaen
  • awwaken
  • waaken

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

aawken2awaekn2awakenn1awakken1awakne2awkaen2awwaken1waaken2
Edit distance from "awaken"

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 "awaken"?
"awaken" is spelled A-W-A-K-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈweɪkən/.
What does "awaken" mean?
As a verb, "awaken" means: To cause to become awake.
What words are commonly confused with "awaken"?
"awaken" is commonly confused with "aware", "awoke", "awoken". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "awaken"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "awaken" is /əˈweɪkən/. 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 "awaken"?
From Middle English awakenen or awaknen, from Old English awæcnan or awæcnian, from a- plus wæcnan or wæcnian. 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 "awaken", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Astros#18,242bonnet#18,254bourne#18,255wreath#18,226

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

annuity8 variantscollage8 variantscords8 variantstailed8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list