bring

Name: bring, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈbɹɪŋ/

//ˈbɹɪŋ// verb

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“bring” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #537 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#537
frequency rank, English: 5
letters: 8
tracked misspellings: 20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To transport toward somebody/somewhere.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

bring vs Brit

40% similar

bring vs Bryn

40% similar

bring vs bung

60% similar

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

Key facts for bring
Property	Value
Headword	bring
Language	English
Part of speech	Verb
IPA	/ˈbɹɪŋ/
Letters	5
Frequency rank	#537
Misspellings tracked	8
Confusable pairs	20
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bring” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). bring lands here:

#537

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bring is 5 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbɹɪŋ/. Corpus data places it at rank #537 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for bring, with forms such as "bbring", "birng", and "brign". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Brit", "Bryn", "bung", 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 bryngen, from Old English bringan, from Proto-West Germanic *bringan, from Proto-Germanic *bringaną (“to bring”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrenk-, possibly based on *bʰer-. Compare Scots bring, West Frisian bringe, Low German brengen, … The correct English form is bring, spelled B-R-I-N-G.

Definition

1
To transport toward somebody/somewhere.
2
To supply or contribute.
3
To occasion or bring about.
4
To raise (a lawsuit, charges, etc.) against somebody.
5
To persuade; to induce; to draw; to lead; to guide.
6
To produce in exchange; to sell for; to fetch.
7
To pitch, often referring to a particularly hard thrown fastball.
8
To move a piece into a more active position, esp. to initially develop it.

Etymology

From Middle English bryngen, from Old English bringan, from Proto-West Germanic *bringan, from Proto-Germanic *bringaną (“to bring”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrenk-, possibly based on *bʰer-. Compare Scots bring, West Frisian bringe, Low German brengen, Dutch brengen, Afrikaans bring, German bringen; also Welsh hebrwng (“to bring, lead”), Tocharian B pränk- (“to take away; restrain oneself, hold back”), Latvian brankti (“lying close”), Lithuanian branktas (“whiffletree”).

This word in other languages

traer(Español)apporter(Français)bringen(Deutsch)trazer(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbring,birng,brign,bringg,brinng,brnig,brring,rbing

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

Edit distance from "bring"

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 "bring"?

"bring" is spelled B-R-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɹɪŋ/.

What does "bring" mean?

As a verb, "bring" means: To transport toward somebody/somewhere.

What words are commonly confused with "bring"?

"bring" is commonly confused with "Brit", "Bryn", "bung". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "bring"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bring" is /ˈbɹɪŋ/. 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 "bring"?

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.

Using “bring”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is B-R-I-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈbɹɪŋ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Don't mix it up with “Brit” - see the side-by-side comparison. bring vs Brit
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

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.