coax

/kəʊks/

//kəʊks// verb

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

"coax" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“coax” has 5 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #30,368. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#30,368
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To fondle, kid, pet, tease.

Corpus desk

Index EN-coax · coax · English

coax · rank #30,368 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #30,368
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cirque

Nearest frequency peer: cirque (-2 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 “coax”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “coax” 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).

coax vs CX
0% similar
coax vs cop
50% similar
coax vs con
50% similar

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

Key facts for coax
PropertyValue
Headwordcoax
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/kəʊks/
Letters4
Frequency rank#30,368
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “coax”

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).coaxlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “cirque” (#30,366), “cinder” (#30,365), “commenter” (#30,371). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “coax” is #30,368. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 5 spelling variants around coax (IPA /kəʊks/), averb. Corpus frequency is #30,368 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for coax, with forms such as "caox", "ccoax", and "coaxx". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "CX", "cop", "con", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Originally (1586) in the slang phrase to make a coax of, from earlier noun coax, cox, cokes "fool, simpleton", itself of obscure origin, perhaps related to cock (“male bird, pert boy”). The modern spelling is from 1706. The correct English form is coax, spelled C-O-A-X.

Definition

  1. 1
    To fondle, kid, pet, tease.
  2. 2
    To wheedle or persuade (a person, organisation, animal etc.) gradually or by use of flattery to do something.
  3. 3
    To carefully manipulate (someone or something) into a particular desired state, situation or position.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She was so mad she wouldn't speak to me for quite a spell, but at last I coaxed her into going up to Miss Emmeline's room and fetching down a tintype of the missing Deacon man.
  2. 12 July 2012, Sam Adams, AV Club Ice Age: Continental Drift On paper, Continental Drift boasts a jaw-dropping voice cast, including but not limited to Jennifer Lopez, Patrick Stewart, Wanda Sykes, Aziz Ansari, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Nicki Minaj, Drake, and Alan Tudyk. But in practice, the overstuffed ensemble leaves the cast no room to distinguish themse…

Etymology

Originally (1586) in the slang phrase to make a coax of, from earlier noun coax, cox, cokes "fool, simpleton", itself of obscure origin, perhaps related to cock (“male bird, pert boy”). The modern spelling is from 1706.

Synonyms

blandanderblandishbutter upcajolefast-talkcanoodlecarnycoaxcolloguecroodleenglefleechhoney aroundhoney uphumingleinveiglesoapsoft-sawdersoft-soapstrokesweet-talktweedletwistwheedlewhillyword

This word in other languages

engatusar(Español)cajoler(Français)überreden(Deutsch)aliciar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • caox
  • ccoax
  • coaxx
  • coxa
  • ocax

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

caox2ccoax1coaxx1coxa2ocax2
Edit distance from "coax"

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 "coax"?
"coax" is spelled C-O-A-X. The IPA pronunciation is /kəʊks/.
What does "coax" mean?
As a verb, "coax" means: To fondle, kid, pet, tease.
What words are commonly confused with "coax"?
"coax" is commonly confused with "CX", "cop", "con". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "coax"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "coax" is /kəʊks/. 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 "coax"?
Originally (1586) in the slang phrase to make a coax of, from earlier noun coax, cox, cokes "fool, simpleton", itself of obscure origin, perhaps related to cock (“male bird, pert boy”). The modern spelling is from 1706. 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 "coax", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

cull#30,384Arun#30,319agro#30,304gabi#30,435

Similar misspelling depth

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

JAMA5 variantskaya5 variantskeene5 variantssith5 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list