conscious

/ˈkɑn.ʃəs/

//ˈkɑn.ʃəs// adj

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

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

The verdict

“conscious” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #5,312 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#5,312
frequency rank, English
9
letters
13
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Alert, awake; with one's mental faculties active.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

conscious vs couscous
78% similar
conscious vs consciously
82% similar

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

Key facts for conscious
PropertyValue
Headwordconscious
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈkɑn.ʃəs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#5,312
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “conscious” 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). conscious 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 conscious is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkɑn.ʃəs/. Corpus data places it at rank #5,312 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 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for conscious, with forms such as "cconscious", "cnoscious", and "concsious". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "couscous", "consciously", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: First use appears c. 1573 in the sense of "aware of wrongdoing".https://web.archive.org/web/20220714064352/https://www.lexico.com/definition/conscious From Latin cōnscius (“conscious, conscious of guilt”), itself from con- (a form of com- (“together”)) + sc… The correct English form is conscious, spelled C-O-N-S-C-I-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Alert, awake; with one's mental faculties active.
  2. 2
    Aware of one's own existence; aware of one's own awareness.
  3. 3
    Aware of, sensitive to; observing and noticing, or being strongly interested in or concerned about.
  4. 4
    Deliberate, intentional, done with awareness of what one is doing.
  5. 5
    Known or felt personally, internally by a person.
  6. 6
    Self-conscious, or aware of wrongdoing, feeling guilty.

Etymology

First use appears c. 1573 in the sense of "aware of wrongdoing".https://web.archive.org/web/20220714064352/https://www.lexico.com/definition/conscious From Latin cōnscius (“conscious, conscious of guilt”), itself from con- (a form of com- (“together”)) + scīre (“to know”) + -us.

Synonyms

intentional deliberatevoluntarywilfulintentional

Antonyms

asleepunawareunconscious

This word in other languages

consciente(Español)conscient(Français)wach(Deutsch)consciente(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: cconscious,cnoscious,concsious,connscious,consccious,consciosu,consciouss,consciuos,conscoius,consicous,consscious,cosncious,ocnscious

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cconscious1cnoscious2concsious2connscious1consccious1consciosu2consciouss1consciuos2
Edit distance from "conscious"

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 "conscious"?
"conscious" is spelled C-O-N-S-C-I-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɑn.ʃəs/.
What does "conscious" mean?
As an adjective, "conscious" means: Alert, awake; with one's mental faculties active.
What words are commonly confused with "conscious"?
"conscious" is commonly confused with "couscous", "consciously". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "conscious"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "conscious" is /ˈkɑn.ʃəs/. 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 "conscious"?
First use appears c. 1573 in the sense of "aware of wrongdoing".https://web.archive.org/web/20220714064352/https://www.lexico.com/definition/conscious From Latin cōnscius (“conscious, conscious of guilt”), itself from con- (a form of com- (“togeth... 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 “conscious”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is C-O-N-S-C-I-O-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈkɑn.ʃəs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “couscous” - see the side-by-side comparison. conscious vs couscous
  • 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