channel

/ˈt͡ʃænəl/

//ˈt͡ʃænəl// noun

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

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

The verdict

“channel” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,478 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#1,478
frequency rank, English
7
letters
8
tracked misspellings
17
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The hollow bed of running waters; (also) the bed of the sea or other body of water.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

channel vs chapel
71% similar
channel vs Chantal
57% similar
channel vs channels
88% similar

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

Key facts for channel
PropertyValue
Headwordchannel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈt͡ʃænəl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#1,478
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs17
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “channel” 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). channel lands here:

#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 channel is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈt͡ʃænəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,478 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 22 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 channel, with forms such as "cahnnel", "cchannel", and "chanenl". 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 17 confusable-pair relationships, "chapel", "Chantal", "channels", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English chanel (also as canel, cannel, kanel), a borrowing from Old French chanel, canel, from Latin canālis (“groove; canal; channel”). Doublet of canal. The correct English form is channel, spelled C-H-A-N-N-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    The hollow bed of running waters; (also) the bed of the sea or other body of water.
  2. 2
    The natural or man-made deeper course through a reef, bar, bay, or any shallow body of water.
  3. 3
    The navigable part of a river.
  4. 4
    A narrow body of water between two land masses.
  5. 5
    Something through which another thing passes; a means of conveying or transmitting.
  6. 6
    An ion channel: pore-forming proteins located in a cell membrane that allow specific ions to pass through.
  7. 7
    A gutter; a groove, as in a fluted column.
  8. 8
    A structural member with a cross section shaped like a squared-off letter C.
  9. 9
    A connection between initiating and terminating nodes of a circuit.
  10. 10
    The narrow conducting portion of a MOSFET transistor.
  11. 11
    The part that connects a data source to a data sink.
  12. 12
    A path for conveying electrical or electromagnetic signals, usually distinguished from other parallel paths.
  13. 13
    A single path provided by a transmission medium via physical separation, such as by multipair cable.
  14. 14
    A single path provided by a transmission medium via spectral or protocol separation, such as by frequency or time-division multiplexing.
  15. 15
    A specific radio frequency or band of frequencies, usually in conjunction with a predetermined letter, number, or codeword, and allocated by international agreement.
  16. 16
    A specific radio frequency or band of frequencies used for transmitting television.
  17. 17
    The portion of a storage medium, such as a track or a band, that is accessible to a given reading or writing station or head.
  18. 18
    The part of a turbine pump where the pressure is built up.
  19. 19
    A distribution channel.
  20. 20
    A particular area for conversations on an IRC or similar network, analogous to a chat room and often dedicated to a specific topic.
  21. 21
    A means of delivering up-to-date Internet content via a push mechanism.
  22. 22
    A psychic or medium who temporarily takes on the personality of somebody else.

Etymology

From Middle English chanel (also as canel, cannel, kanel), a borrowing from Old French chanel, canel, from Latin canālis (“groove; canal; channel”). Doublet of canal.

Synonyms

passagesoundstraitsidestationgroovegutterC-channel

This word in other languages

canal(Español)chaîne(Français)Kanal(Deutsch)canal(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: cahnnel,cchannel,chanenl,channell,channle,chhannel,chnanel,hcannel

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cahnnel2cchannel1chanenl2channell1channle2chhannel1chnanel2hcannel2
Edit distance from "channel"

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 "channel"?
"channel" is spelled C-H-A-N-N-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈt͡ʃænəl/.
What does "channel" mean?
As a noun, "channel" means: The hollow bed of running waters; (also) the bed of the sea or other body of water.
What words are commonly confused with "channel"?
"channel" is commonly confused with "chapel", "Chantal", "channels". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "channel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "channel" is /ˈt͡ʃænəl/. 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 "channel"?
From Middle English chanel (also as canel, cannel, kanel), a borrowing from Old French chanel, canel, from Latin canālis (“groove; canal; channel”). Doublet of canal. 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.

Using “channel”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is C-H-A-N-N-E-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈt͡ʃænəl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “chapel” - see the side-by-side comparison. channel vs chapel
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list