cadence

/ˈkeɪ.dn̩s/

//ˈkeɪ.dn̩s// noun

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

"cadence" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“cadence” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #24,691. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#24,691
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act or state of declining or sinking.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cadence · cadence · English

cadence · rank #24,691 · 11 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #24,691
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Californian

Nearest frequency peer: Californian (+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 “cadence”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “cadence” 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).

cadence vs cayenne
71% similar
cadence vs clarence
75% similar
cadence vs credence
75% similar

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

Key facts for cadence
PropertyValue
Headwordcadence
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkeɪ.dn̩s/
Letters7
Frequency rank#24,691
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “cadence”

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).cadencelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Californian” (#24,692), “burgeoning” (#24,689), “bucky” (#24,688). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cadence” is #24,691. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around cadence (IPA /ˈkeɪ.dn̩s/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #24,691 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 16 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for cadence, with forms such as "acdence", "cadance", and "caddence". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "cayenne", "clarence", "credence", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Middle French cadence, from Old Italian cadenza (“conclusion of a phrase of music”), from Latin *cadentia (literally “a falling”), form of cadēns, the present participle of cadō (“I fall, I cease”). The Latin verb is inherited, via Proto-Itali… The correct English form is cadence, spelled C-A-D-E-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act or state of declining or sinking.
  2. 2
    The measure or beat of movement.
  3. 3
    Balanced, rhythmic flow.
  4. 4
    The general inflection or modulation of the voice, or of any sound.
  5. 5
    A progression of at least two chords which conclude a piece of music, section or musical phrases within it. Sometimes referred to analogously as musical punctuation.
  6. 6
    A cadenza, or closing embellishment; a pause before the end of a strain, which the performer may fill with a flight of fancy.
  7. 7
    A fall in inflection of a speaker’s voice, such as at the end of a sentence.
  8. 8
    A dance move which ends a phrase.
  9. 9
    The rhythm and sequence of a series of actions.
  10. 10
    The number of steps per minute.
  11. 11
    The number of revolutions per minute of the cranks or pedals of a bicycle.
  12. 12
    A chant that is sung by military personnel while running or marching; a jody call.
  13. 13
    Cadency.
  14. 14
    Harmony and proportion of movement, as in a well-managed horse.
  15. 15
    The number of strides per second of a racehorse, measured when the same foot/hoof strikes the ground
  16. 16
    The frequency of regular product releases.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Now was the sun in western cadence low.
  2. Getting into a good jigging rhythm means making short quick jerks in a regular cadence that might average about one jerk every 1.5 to 2 seconds.

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French cadence, from Old Italian cadenza (“conclusion of a phrase of music”), from Latin *cadentia (literally “a falling”), form of cadēns, the present participle of cadō (“I fall, I cease”). The Latin verb is inherited, via Proto-Italic *kadō, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱad-e- (“to fall”, thematic present). Doublet of cadenza and chance.

Synonyms

clausula

This word in other languages

cadencia(Español)cadence(Français)Rhythmus(Deutsch)cadência(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • acdence
  • cadance
  • caddence
  • cadecne
  • cadencce
  • cadenec
  • cadennce
  • cadnece
  • caednce
  • ccadence
  • cdaence

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

acdence2cadance1caddence1cadecne2cadencce1cadenec2cadennce1cadnece2
Edit distance from "cadence"

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 "cadence"?
"cadence" is spelled C-A-D-E-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkeɪ.dn̩s/.
What does "cadence" mean?
As a noun, "cadence" means: The act or state of declining or sinking.
What words are commonly confused with "cadence"?
"cadence" is commonly confused with "cayenne", "clarence", "credence". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "cadence"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cadence" is /ˈkeɪ.dn̩s/. 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 "cadence"?
Borrowed from Middle French cadence, from Old Italian cadenza (“conclusion of a phrase of music”), from Latin *cadentia (literally “a falling”), form of cadēns, the present participle of cadō (“I fall, I cease”). The Latin verb is inherited, via P... 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 "cadence", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Candice#24,695bracing#24,684bouncer#24,683Bingham#24,682

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

bavarian11 variantsAsheville11 variantsupheaval11 variantsfraught11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list