confine

/kənˈfaɪn/

//kənˈfaɪn// verb

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

"confine" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“confine” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #31,931. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#31,931
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
18
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To have a common boundary with; to border on.

Corpus desk

Index EN-confine · confine · English

confine · rank #31,931 · 10 variants · 18 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #31,931
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 18 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH conceptually

Nearest frequency peer: conceptually (-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 “confine”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “confine” 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).

confine vs Connie
57% similar
confine vs confirm
71% similar
confine vs confuse
71% similar

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

Key facts for confine
PropertyValue
Headwordconfine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/kənˈfaɪn/
Letters7
Frequency rank#31,931
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs18
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “confine”

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).confinelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “conceptually” (#31,930), “congregate” (#31,932), “concentric” (#31,929). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “confine” is #31,931. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around confine (IPA /kənˈfaɪn/), averb. Corpus frequency is #31,931 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for confine, with forms such as "cconfine", "cnofine", and "cofnine". 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 18 confusable-pair relationships, "Connie", "confirm", "confuse", 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 French confiner, from confins, from Medieval Latin confines, from Latin confinium, from confīnis. The correct English form is confine, spelled C-O-N-F-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To have a common boundary with; to border on.
  2. 2
    To restrict (someone or something) to a particular scope or area; to keep in or within certain bounds.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Where your gloomy bounds / Confine with heaven
  2. Betwixt heaven and earth and skies there stands a place / Confining on all three.

Etymology

From Middle French confiner, from confins, from Medieval Latin confines, from Latin confinium, from confīnis.

This word in other languages

confinar(Español)confiner(Français)beschränken(Deutsch)confinar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cconfine
  • cnofine
  • cofnine
  • conffine
  • confien
  • confinne
  • confnie
  • conifne
  • connfine
  • ocnfine

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cconfine1cnofine2cofnine2conffine1confien2confinne1confnie2conifne2
Edit distance from "confine"

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 "confine"?
"confine" is spelled C-O-N-F-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kənˈfaɪn/.
What does "confine" mean?
As a verb, "confine" means: To have a common boundary with; to border on.
What words are commonly confused with "confine"?
"confine" is commonly confused with "Connie", "confirm", "confuse". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "confine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "confine" is /kənˈfaɪn/. 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 "confine"?
From Middle French confiner, from confins, from Medieval Latin confines, from Latin confinium, from confīnis. 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 "confine", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

copycat#31,936compels#31,925cursory#31,943clarion#31,918

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

Delilah10 variantsDryden10 variantsDurango10 variantsflinch10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list