christening

/ˈkɹɪs.ə.nɪŋ/

//ˈkɹɪs.ə.nɪŋ// noun

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

"christening" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“christening” has 18 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #33,566. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#33,566
frequency rank, English
43,570
“C” headwords
18
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The Christian sacrament at which someone, usually a child, is baptized and given a Christian name.

Corpus desk

Index EN-christening · christening · English

christening · rank #33,566 · 18 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #33,566
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 18 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 43,570
  • PHOTO-FINISH Chisholm

Nearest frequency peer: Chisholm (-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 “christening”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “christening” 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 May 6, 2026
Key facts for christening
PropertyValue
Headwordchristening
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkɹɪs.ə.nɪŋ/
Letters11
Frequency rank#33,566
Misspellings tracked18
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “christening” 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). christening 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 18 spelling variants around christening (IPA /ˈkɹɪs.ə.nɪŋ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #33,566 among 43,570 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for christening, with forms such as "cchristening", "chhristening", and "chirstening". 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. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English cristenynge, from Old English cristnung; compare christen + -ing. The correct English form is christening, spelled C-H-R-I-S-T-E-N-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    The Christian sacrament at which someone, usually a child, is baptized and given a Christian name.
  2. 2
    Any instance of someone's or something's being christened.

Etymology

From Middle English cristenynge, from Old English cristnung; compare christen + -ing.

This word in other languages

bautizo(Español)baptême(Français)Taufe(Deutsch)batizado(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cchristening
  • chhristening
  • chirstening
  • chrisetning
  • chrisstening
  • christeinng
  • christenign
  • christeningg
  • christeninng
  • christennig
  • christenning
  • christneing
  • christtening
  • chritsening
  • chrristening
  • chrsitening
  • crhistening
  • hcristening

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cchristening1chhristening1chirstening2chrisetning2chrisstening1christeinng2christenign2christeningg1
Edit distance from "christening"

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 May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "christening"?
"christening" is spelled C-H-R-I-S-T-E-N-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɹɪs.ə.nɪŋ/.
What does "christening" mean?
As a noun, "christening" means: The Christian sacrament at which someone, usually a child, is baptized and given a Christian name.
What are common misspellings of "christening"?
Common misspellings include "cchristening", "chhristening", "chirstening", "chrisetning", "chrisstening". The correct spelling is "christening".
How do you pronounce "christening"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "christening" is /ˈkɹɪs.ə.nɪŋ/. 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 "christening"?
From Middle English cristenynge, from Old English cristnung; compare christen + -ing. 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 "christening", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Charlemagne#33,562categorical#33,559directorial#33,617disparaging#33,621

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (18 here; floor ≥5).

disintegrate18 variantsundetermined18 variantsintractable18 variantsKirkpatrick18 variants
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