belong

/bɪˈlɒŋ/

//bɪˈlɒŋ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“belong” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #3,740. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#3,740
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To have its proper place.

Corpus desk

Index EN-belong · belong · English

belong · rank #3,740 · 9 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #3,740
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH arrive

Nearest frequency peer: arrive (-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 “belong”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “belong” 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).

belong vs blog
67% similar
belong vs bong
67% similar
belong vs below
67% similar

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

Key facts for belong
PropertyValue
Headwordbelong
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/bɪˈlɒŋ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#3,740
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “belong”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).belonglands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “arrive” (#3,739), “Berlin” (#3,741), “Arizona” (#3,738). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “belong” is #3,740. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around belong (IPA /bɪˈlɒŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #3,740 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for belong, with forms such as "bbelong", "bellong", and "belnog". 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 14 confusable-pair relationships, "blog", "bong", "below", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English belongen, bilongen, from Middle English be- + longen (“to be fitting, be suitable”), from Old English langian (“to pertain to, suit”), equivalent to be- + long (“to belong”). Compare Saterland Frisian beloangje (“to attain, reach, meet”)… The correct English form is belong, spelled B-E-L-O-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    To have its proper place.
  2. 2
    To have its proper place.
  3. 3
    To have its proper place.
  4. 4
    To be part of, or the property of.
  5. 5
    To be the spouse or partner of.
  6. 6
    (followed by to) To be an element of (a set). The symbol ∈ means belongs to.
  7. 7
    To be deserved by.
  8. 8
    To do something habitually or customarily.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Where does this book belong? It belongs on the top shelf.
  2. You don’t belong here — get out.

Etymology

From Middle English belongen, bilongen, from Middle English be- + longen (“to be fitting, be suitable”), from Old English langian (“to pertain to, suit”), equivalent to be- + long (“to belong”). Compare Saterland Frisian beloangje (“to attain, reach, meet”), Dutch belangen (“to concern”), German belangen (“to sue, concern”).

This word in other languages

pertenecer(Español)faire partie(Français)hingehören(Deutsch)pertencer(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bbelong
  • bellong
  • belnog
  • belogn
  • belongg
  • belonng
  • beolng
  • bleong
  • eblong

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of belong - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bbelong1bellong1belnog2belogn2belongg1belonng1beolng2bleong2
Edit distance from "belong"

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 "belong"?
"belong" is spelled B-E-L-O-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /bɪˈlɒŋ/.
What does "belong" mean?
As a verb, "belong" means: To have its proper place.
What words are commonly confused with "belong"?
"belong" is commonly confused with "blog", "bong", "below". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "belong"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "belong" is /bɪˈlɒŋ/. 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 "belong"?
From Middle English belongen, bilongen, from Middle English be- + longen (“to be fitting, be suitable”), from Old English langian (“to pertain to, suit”), equivalent to be- + long (“to belong”). Compare Saterland Frisian beloangje (“to attain, rea... 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 "belong", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

arrive#3,739Berlin#3,741bishop#3,742they'd#3,729

Similar misspelling depth

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

Arizona9 variantsconnect9 variantsserves9 variantskicked9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list