clinging

/ˈklɪŋɪŋ/

//ˈklɪŋɪŋ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“clinging” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,040. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,040
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of cling

Corpus desk

Index EN-clinging · clinging · English

clinging · rank #18,040 · 13 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,040
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH clapping

Nearest frequency peer: clapping (-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 “clinging”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “clinging” 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).

clinging vs cloning
75% similar
clinging vs coining
75% similar
clinging vs clipping
75% similar

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

Key facts for clinging
PropertyValue
Headwordclinging
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈklɪŋɪŋ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#18,040
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “clinging”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).clinginglands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “clapping” (#18,039), “clover” (#18,041), “CMS” (#18,042). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “clinging” is #18,040. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around clinging (IPA /ˈklɪŋɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #18,040 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of cling".

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for clinging, with forms such as "cclinging", "cilnging", and "cligning". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "cloning", "coining", "clipping", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct English form is clinging, spelled C-L-I-N-G-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of cling

Synonyms

attachmentclingyadherentadhesive

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cclinging
  • cilnging
  • cligning
  • clingging
  • clingign
  • clingingg
  • clinginng
  • clingnig
  • clinigng
  • clinnging
  • cllinging
  • clniging
  • lcinging

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cclinging1cilnging2cligning2clingging1clingign2clingingg1clinginng1clingnig2
Edit distance from "clinging"

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 "clinging"?
"clinging" is spelled C-L-I-N-G-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈklɪŋɪŋ/.
What does "clinging" mean?
As a verb, "clinging" means: present participle and gerund of cling
What words are commonly confused with "clinging"?
"clinging" is commonly confused with "cloning", "coining", "clipping". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "clinging"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "clinging" is /ˈklɪŋɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "clinging" come from?
"clinging" 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 "clinging", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

clapping#18,039coatings#18,043Connolly#18,046cookbook#18,047

Similar misspelling depth

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

centennial13 variantscrippling13 variantsequitable13 variantsanecdotes13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list