communism

[ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩]

/[ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩]/ noun

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

"communism" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“communism” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #9,586 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#9,586
frequency rank, English
9
letters
12
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any far-left political ideology or philosophy advocating holding the production of resources collectively, especially by seizing it through revolution.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

communism vs community
78% similar
communism vs communist
89% similar
communism vs communion
78% similar

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

Key facts for communism
PropertyValue
Headwordcommunism
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩]
Letters9
Frequency rank#9,586
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “communism” 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). communism lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for communism is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩]. Corpus data places it at rank #9,586 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for communism, with forms such as "ccommunism", "cmomunism", and "commnuism". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "community", "communist", "communion", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Old Latin comoinis Latin commūnis Old French comun French commun Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European… The correct English form is communism, spelled C-O-M-M-U-N-I-S-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any far-left political ideology or philosophy advocating holding the production of resources collectively, especially by seizing it through revolution.
  2. 2
    Any political social system that implements a communist political philosophy.
  3. 3
    The international socialist society where classes, money, and the state no longer exist.
  4. 4
    Any left-wing ideology, government regulations, or policies promoting a welfare state, nationalisation, etc.
  5. 5
    Readiness to share scientific findings (the first of the Mertonian norms).
  6. 6
    communality, sharedness.

Etymology

Etymology tree Old Latin comoinis Latin commūnis Old French comun French commun Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ισμός (-ismós)der. Latin -ismusbor. French -isme French communismebor. English communism A borrowing from French communisme, which was formed from commun (“common”) (from Latin commūnis) and the suffix -isme (“-ism”). By surface analysis, commune + -ism.

This word in other languages

comunismo(Español)communisme(Français)Kommunismus(Deutsch)comunismo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ccommunism,cmomunism,commnuism,commuinsm,communims,communismm,communissm,communnism,communsim,comumnism,comunism,ocmmunism

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of communism - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ccommunism1cmomunism2commnuism2commuinsm2communims2communismm1communissm1communnism1
Edit distance from "communism"

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 "communism"?
"communism" is spelled C-O-M-M-U-N-I-S-M. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩].
What does "communism" mean?
As a noun, "communism" means: Any far-left political ideology or philosophy advocating holding the production of resources collectively, especially by seizing it through revolution.
What words are commonly confused with "communism"?
"communism" is commonly confused with "community", "communist", "communion". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "communism"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "communism" is [ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩]. 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 "communism"?
Etymology tree Old Latin comoinis Latin commūnis Old French comun French commun Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Ind... 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.

Using “communism”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is C-O-M-M-U-N-I-S-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈkɒm.ju.nɪ.zm̩] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “community” - see the side-by-side comparison. communism vs community
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list