catching

/ˈkæt͡ʃɪŋ/

//ˈkæt͡ʃɪŋ// adj

"catching" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“catching” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #5,107. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#5,107
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Infectious, contagious.

Corpus desk

Index EN-catching · catching · English

catching · rank #5,107 · 13 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,107
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH caring

Nearest frequency peer: caring (-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 “catching”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “catching” 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).

catching vs coaching
75% similar
catching vs catering
75% similar
catching vs clutching
78% similar

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

Key facts for catching
PropertyValue
Headwordcatching
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈkæt͡ʃɪŋ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#5,107
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “catching”

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).catchinglands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “caring” (#5,106), “cave” (#5,108), “bug” (#5,105). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “catching” is #5,107. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around catching (IPA /ˈkæt͡ʃɪŋ/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #5,107 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for catching, with forms such as "actching", "cacthing", and "catcching". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "coaching", "catering", "clutching", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Our source data has no etymology on file 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 catching, spelled C-A-T-C-H-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    Infectious, contagious.
  2. 2
    Captivating; alluring; catchy.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Ah, who is this? You did not hear me, my young friend, did you? Why, you, too, look sad. My melancholy is not catching!
  2. Bomb guy looked her up and down, not because he was an attractive man and she was possibly a catching woman.

Synonyms

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • actching
  • cacthing
  • catcching
  • catchhing
  • catchign
  • catchingg
  • catchinng
  • catchnig
  • catcihng
  • cathcing
  • cattching
  • ccatching
  • ctaching

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of catching - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

actching2cacthing2catcching1catchhing1catchign2catchingg1catchinng1catchnig2
Edit distance from "catching"

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 "catching"?
"catching" is spelled C-A-T-C-H-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkæt͡ʃɪŋ/.
What does "catching" mean?
As an adjective, "catching" means: Infectious, contagious.
What words are commonly confused with "catching"?
"catching" is commonly confused with "coaching", "catering", "clutching". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "catching"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "catching" is /ˈkæt͡ʃɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "catching" come from?
"catching" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 "catching", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list