carcinogen

/kɑɹˈsɪnəd͡ʒən/

//kɑɹˈsɪnəd͡ʒən// noun

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

"carcinogen" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“carcinogen” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #48,118. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#48,118
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A substance or agent that can cause cancer.

Corpus desk

Index EN-carcinogen · carcinogen · English

carcinogen · rank #48,118 · 15 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #48,118
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH captioning

Nearest frequency peer: captioning (-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 “carcinogen”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “carcinogen” 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).

carcinogen vs carcinogenic
83% similar

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

Key facts for carcinogen
PropertyValue
Headwordcarcinogen
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kɑɹˈsɪnəd͡ʒən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#48,118
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “carcinogen”

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).carcinogenlands 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 “captioning” (#48,117), “cased” (#48,121), “cannery” (#48,114). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “carcinogen” is #48,118. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around carcinogen (IPA /kɑɹˈsɪnəd͡ʒən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #48,118 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A substance or agent that can cause cancer.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for carcinogen, with forms such as "acrcinogen", "cacrinogen", and "carccinogen". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "carcinogenic", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From carcino- + -gen. The correct English form is carcinogen, spelled C-A-R-C-I-N-O-G-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A substance or agent that can cause cancer.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. We know there are substances in our environment that are proven carcinogens—ionizing radiation, electromagnetic fields, organochlorines, pesticides and herbicides.
  2. This isn’t the first benzene-related recall of 2021. In July, Johnson & Johnson recalled some spray-on Neutrogena and Aveeno sunscreens after it detected low levels of the carcinogen in the products.

Etymology

From carcino- + -gen.

This word in other languages

carcinógeno(Español)cancérogène(Français)Karzinogen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • acrcinogen
  • cacrinogen
  • carccinogen
  • carcingoen
  • carcinnogen
  • carcinoegn
  • carcinogenn
  • carcinoggen
  • carcinogne
  • carciongen
  • carcniogen
  • caricnogen
  • carrcinogen
  • ccarcinogen
  • cracinogen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

acrcinogen2cacrinogen2carccinogen1carcingoen2carcinnogen1carcinoegn2carcinogenn1carcinoggen1
Edit distance from "carcinogen"

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 "carcinogen"?
"carcinogen" is spelled C-A-R-C-I-N-O-G-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /kɑɹˈsɪnəd͡ʒən/.
What does "carcinogen" mean?
As a noun, "carcinogen" means: A substance or agent that can cause cancer.
What words are commonly confused with "carcinogen"?
"carcinogen" is commonly confused with "carcinogenic". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "carcinogen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "carcinogen" is /kɑɹˈsɪnəd͡ʒən/. 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 "carcinogen"?
From carcino- + -gen. 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 "carcinogen", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

captioning#48,117changeling#48,130chargeable#48,131biophysics#48,088

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

aspergillus15 variantsanthracite15 variantsdatacenter15 variantsdisassemble15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list