crowdsourcing

noun

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

"crowdsourcing" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“crowdsourcing” has 21 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #42,074. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#42,074
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
21
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The delegation of a task to a large diffuse group in order to introduce new or more developed skill sets and improve efficiency. There is usually no substantial monetary compensation involved.

Corpus desk

Index EN-crowdsourcing · crowdsourcing · English

crowdsourcing · rank #42,074 · 21 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #42,074
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 21 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH coursing

Nearest frequency peer: coursing (-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 “crowdsourcing”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “crowdsourcing” 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
Key facts for crowdsourcing
PropertyValue
Headwordcrowdsourcing
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters13
Frequency rank#42,074
Misspellings tracked21
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “crowdsourcing”

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).crowdsourcinglands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “coursing” (#42,073), “crucify” (#42,075), “counterintuitive” (#42,072). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “crowdsourcing” is #42,074. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 21 spelling variants around crowdsourcing, anoun. Corpus frequency is #42,074 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The delegation of a task to a large diffuse group in order to introduce new or more developed skill sets and improve efficiency. There is usually no substantial monetary compensation involved.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 21 likely wrong-spelling variants for crowdsourcing, with forms such as "ccrowdsourcing", "corwdsourcing", and "crodwsourcing". 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. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: Coined by American journalist Jeff Howe in 2006, see quotations. From crowd + sourcing, by analogy with outsourcing. The correct English form is crowdsourcing, spelled C-R-O-W-D-S-O-U-R-C-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    The delegation of a task to a large diffuse group in order to introduce new or more developed skill sets and improve efficiency. There is usually no substantial monetary compensation involved.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. P&G is one of InnoCentive’s earliest and best customers, but the company works with other crowdsourcing networks as well.
  2. While not a new phenomenon, crowdsourcing is really growing as a business trend.

Etymology

Coined by American journalist Jeff Howe in 2006, see quotations. From crowd + sourcing, by analogy with outsourcing.

This word in other languages

production participative(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccrowdsourcing
  • corwdsourcing
  • crodwsourcing
  • crowddsourcing
  • crowdosurcing
  • crowdsorucing
  • crowdsoucring
  • crowdsourccing
  • crowdsourcign
  • crowdsourcingg
  • crowdsourcinng
  • crowdsourcnig
  • crowdsouricng
  • crowdsourrcing
  • crowdssourcing
  • crowdsuorcing
  • crowsdourcing
  • crowwdsourcing
  • crrowdsourcing
  • crwodsourcing
  • rcowdsourcing

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of crowdsourcing - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ccrowdsourcing1corwdsourcing2crodwsourcing2crowddsourcing1crowdosurcing2crowdsorucing2crowdsoucring2crowdsourccing1
Edit distance from "crowdsourcing"

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 "crowdsourcing"?
"crowdsourcing" is spelled C-R-O-W-D-S-O-U-R-C-I-N-G.
What does "crowdsourcing" mean?
As a noun, "crowdsourcing" means: The delegation of a task to a large diffuse group in order to introduce new or more developed skill sets and improve efficiency. There is usually no substantial monetary compensation involved.
What are common misspellings of "crowdsourcing"?
Common misspellings include "ccrowdsourcing", "corwdsourcing", "crodwsourcing", "crowddsourcing", "crowdosurcing". The correct spelling is "crowdsourcing".
What is the origin of the word "crowdsourcing"?
Coined by American journalist Jeff Howe in 2006, see quotations. From crowd + sourcing, by analogy with outsourcing. 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 "crowdsourcing", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 13 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

cyberbullying#42,079embellishment#42,115bibliographic#42,027flabbergasted#42,136

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (21 here; floor ≥5).

disorientation21 variantspreponderance21 variantspolypropylene21 variantsneuroscientist21 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list