charge

/t͡ʃɑːd͡ʒ/

//t͡ʃɑːd͡ʒ// noun

"charge" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“charge” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,012. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,012
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The amount of money levied for a service.

Corpus desk

Index EN-charge · charge · English

charge · rank #1,012 · 9 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,012
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH century

Nearest frequency peer: century (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “charge”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “charge” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

charge vs chart
67% similar
charge vs chase
67% similar
charge vs charm
67% similar

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

Key facts for charge
PropertyValue
Headwordcharge
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/t͡ʃɑːd͡ʒ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#1,012
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “charge” 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). charge lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around charge (IPA /t͡ʃɑːd͡ʒ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,012 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 21 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for charge, with forms such as "cahrge", "ccharge", and "chagre". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "chart", "chase", "charm", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥sós Proto-Celtic *karros Gaulish *karrosbor. Late Latin carrus Late Latin -ico Late Latin carricō Late Latin carricāre Old French chargierder. Middle English chargen … The correct English form is charge, spelled C-H-A-R-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The amount of money levied for a service.
  2. 2
    An attack in which combatants rush towards an enemy in an attempt to engage in close combat.
  3. 3
    A forceful forward movement.
  4. 4
    An accusation.
  5. 5
    An accusation.
  6. 6
    An electric charge.
  7. 7
    The scope of someone's responsibility.
  8. 8
    Someone or something entrusted to one's care, such as a child to a babysitter or a student to a teacher.
  9. 9
    A load or burden; cargo.
  10. 10
    An instruction.
  11. 11
    A mortgage.
  12. 12
    An offensive foul in which the player with the ball moves into a stationary defender.
  13. 13
    A measured amount of powder and/or shot in a cartridge.
  14. 14
    A measured amount of explosive.
  15. 15
    An image displayed on an escutcheon.
  16. 16
    A position (of a weapon) fitted for attack.
  17. 17
    A sort of plaster or ointment.
  18. 18
    Weight; import; value.
  19. 19
    A measure of thirty-six pigs of lead, each pig weighing about seventy pounds; a charre.
  20. 20
    An address given at a church service concluding a visitation.
  21. 21
    Cannabis.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. There will be a charge of five dollars.
  2. Pickett's Charge; the Charge of the Light Brigade

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥sós Proto-Celtic *karros Gaulish *karrosbor. Late Latin carrus Late Latin -ico Late Latin carricō Late Latin carricāre Old French chargierder. Middle English chargen English charge From Middle English chargen, from Old French chargier, from Late Latin carricō (“to load”), from Latin carrus (“a car, wagon”); see car. Doublet of cargo.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cahrge
  • ccharge
  • chagre
  • chareg
  • chargge
  • charrge
  • chharge
  • chrage
  • hcarge

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of charge - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

cahrge2ccharge1chagre2chareg2chargge1charrge1chharge1chrage2
Edit distance from "charge"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "charge"?
"charge" is spelled C-H-A-R-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is /t͡ʃɑːd͡ʒ/.
What does "charge" mean?
As a noun, "charge" means: The amount of money levied for a service.
What words are commonly confused with "charge"?
"charge" is commonly confused with "chart", "chase", "charm". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "charge"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "charge" is /t͡ʃɑːd͡ʒ/. 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 "charge"?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- Proto-Indo-European *-ós Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥sós Proto-Celtic *karros Gaulish *karrosbor. Late Latin carrus Late Latin -ico Late Latin carricō Late Latin carricāre Old French chargierder. Middle Englis... 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 "charge", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

What to do next

You've looked up "charge". Here's where to go from here.

  • "charge" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "chart". View pair
  • 9 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #1,012 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "C" letter cohort. C–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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