charm

/tʃɑːm/

//tʃɑːm// noun

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

"charm" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“charm” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #5,863. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#5,863
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An object, act or words believed to have magic power (usually carries a positive connotation).

Corpus desk

Index EN-charm · charm · English

charm · rank #5,863 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,863
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Caribbean

Nearest frequency peer: Caribbean (-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 “charm”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “charm” 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).

charm vs CRM
0% similar
charm vs CHR
0% similar
charm vs chat
60% similar

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

Key facts for charm
PropertyValue
Headwordcharm
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/tʃɑːm/
Letters5
Frequency rank#5,863
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “charm” sits in English frequency

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).charm lands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around charm (IPA /tʃɑːm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #5,863 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for charm, with forms such as "cahrm", "ccharm", and "chamr". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "CRM", "CHR", "chat", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English charme, from Old French charme (“chant, magic spell”), from Latin carmen (“song, incantation”). The correct English form is charm, spelled C-H-A-R-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    An object, act or words believed to have magic power (usually carries a positive connotation).
  2. 2
    The ability to persuade, delight or arouse admiration.
  3. 3
    A small trinket on a bracelet or chain, etc., traditionally supposed to confer luck upon the wearer.
  4. 4
    The collective noun for a group of goldfinches.
  5. 5
    A quantum number of hadrons determined by the number of charm quarks and antiquarks.
  6. 6
    A second-order measure of derivative price sensitivity, expressed as the instantaneous rate of change of delta with respect to time.
  7. 7
    An icon providing quick access to a command or setting.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. a charm against evil
  2. It works like a charm.

Etymology

From Middle English charme, from Old French charme (“chant, magic spell”), from Latin carmen (“song, incantation”).

This word in other languages

amuleto(Español)fétiche(Français)Amulett(Deutsch)fetiche(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cahrm
  • ccharm
  • chamr
  • charmm
  • charrm
  • chharm
  • chram
  • hcarm

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cahrm2ccharm1chamr2charmm1charrm1chharm1chram2hcarm2
Edit distance from "charm"

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 "charm"?
"charm" is spelled C-H-A-R-M. The IPA pronunciation is /tʃɑːm/.
What does "charm" mean?
As a noun, "charm" means: An object, act or words believed to have magic power (usually carries a positive connotation).
What words are commonly confused with "charm"?
"charm" is commonly confused with "CRM", "CHR", "chat". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "charm"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "charm" is /tʃɑːm/. 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 "charm"?
From Middle English charme, from Old French charme (“chant, magic spell”), from Latin carmen (“song, incantation”). 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 "charm", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

cruel#5,869delta#5,873valve#5,848theft#5,845

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Easter8 variantseleven8 variantslinear8 variantssealed8 variants

What to do next

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

  • "charm" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "CRM". View pair
  • 8 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #5,863 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