case in point

/keɪs ɪn pɔɪnt/

//keɪs ɪn pɔɪnt// noun

"case-in-point" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“case in point” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An example that illustrates a point.

Corpus desk

Index EN-case-in-point · case in point · English

case in point · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for case in point
PropertyValue
Headwordcase in point
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/keɪs ɪn pɔɪnt/
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “case in point” in English

case in pointranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

case in point is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /keɪs ɪn pɔɪnt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An example that illustrates a point.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for case in point, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct English form is case in point, spelled C-A-S-E- -I-N- -P-O-I-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    An example that illustrates a point.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. But philosophers inform us that old age is apt to revert to the habits of youth, and Sechard senior is a case in point—the older he grew, the better he loved to drink.
  2. The old Ramsgate Harbour station of the one-time South Eastern Railway was a case in point, as also the stations in the Isle of Wight that you name, such as Ventnor West.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "case in point"?
"case in point" is spelled C-A-S-E- -I-N- -P-O-I-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /keɪs ɪn pɔɪnt/.
What does "case in point" mean?
As a noun, "case in point" means: An example that illustrates a point.
How do you pronounce "case in point"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "case in point" is /keɪs ɪn pɔɪnt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "case in point" come from?
"case in point" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list