cornerstone
"cornerstone" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“cornerstone” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #17,333 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #17,333
- frequency rank, English
- 11
- letters
- 17
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A stone forming the base at the corner of a building.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | cornerstone |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 11 |
| Frequency rank | #17,333 |
| Misspellings tracked | 17 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “cornerstone” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for cornerstone is 11 letters long, classified as a noun. Corpus data places it at rank #17,333 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for cornerstone, with forms such as "ccornerstone", "conrerstone", and "corenrstone". 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. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English corner ston; equivalent to corner + stone. The figurative sense is in part after Psalm 118:22, and is also quoted several times in the New Testament. The correct English form is cornerstone, spelled C-O-R-N-E-R-S-T-O-N-E.
Definition
- 1A stone forming the base at the corner of a building.
- 2Such a stone used ceremonially, often inscribed with the architect's and owner's names, dates and other details.
- 3That which is prominent, fundamental, noteworthy, or central.
Etymology
From Middle English corner ston; equivalent to corner + stone. The figurative sense is in part after Psalm 118:22, and is also quoted several times in the New Testament.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ccornerstone,conrerstone,corenrstone,cornerrstone,cornersotne,cornersstone,cornerstnoe,cornerstoen,cornerstonne,cornersttone,cornertsone,cornesrtone,cornnerstone,cornrestone,corrnerstone,cronerstone,ocrnerstone
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of cornerstone - 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.
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
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Using “cornerstone”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-O-R-N-E-R-S-T-O-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- 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.