cunning

/ˈkʌnɪŋ/

//ˈkʌnɪŋ// adj

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

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

The verdict

“cunning” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #15,999. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#15,999
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
15
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Sly; crafty; clever in surreptitious behaviour.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cunning · cunning · English

cunning · rank #15,999 · 9 variants · 15 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #15,999
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 15 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Cumberland

Nearest frequency peer: Cumberland (-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 “cunning”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “cunning” 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).

cunning vs curing
71% similar
cunning vs cutting
71% similar
cunning vs curling
71% similar

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

Key facts for cunning
PropertyValue
Headwordcunning
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈkʌnɪŋ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#15,999
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs15
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “cunning”

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).cunninglands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Cumberland” (#15,998), “Daly” (#16,000), “Crimea” (#15,997). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cunning” is #15,999. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around cunning (IPA /ˈkʌnɪŋ/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #15,999 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for cunning, with forms such as "ccunning", "cnuning", and "cuning". 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 15 confusable-pair relationships, "curing", "cutting", "curling", 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 English cunning, kunning, konnyng, alteration of earlier Middle English cunninde, kunnende, cunnand, from Old English cunnende, present participle of cunnan (“to know how to, be able to”), equivalent to con + -ing. Cognate with Scots cunnand (“c… The correct English form is cunning, spelled C-U-N-N-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sly; crafty; clever in surreptitious behaviour.
  2. 2
    Skillful, artful.
  3. 3
    Wrought with, or exhibiting, skill or ingenuity; ingenious.
  4. 4
    Cute, appealing.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. They are resolved to be cunning; let others run the hazard of being sincere.
  2. Esau was a cunning hunter.

Etymology

From Middle English cunning, kunning, konnyng, alteration of earlier Middle English cunninde, kunnende, cunnand, from Old English cunnende, present participle of cunnan (“to know how to, be able to”), equivalent to con + -ing. Cognate with Scots cunnand (“cunning”), German könnend (“able to do”), Icelandic kunnandi (“cunning”). More at con, can.

This word in other languages

astuto(Español)rusé(Français)gerissen(Deutsch)astuto(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccunning
  • cnuning
  • cuning
  • cuninng
  • cunnign
  • cunningg
  • cunninng
  • cunnnig
  • ucnning

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ccunning1cnuning2cuning1cuninng2cunnign2cunningg1cunninng1cunnnig2
Edit distance from "cunning"

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 "cunning"?
"cunning" is spelled C-U-N-N-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkʌnɪŋ/.
What does "cunning" mean?
As an adjective, "cunning" means: Sly; crafty; clever in surreptitious behaviour.
What words are commonly confused with "cunning"?
"cunning" is commonly confused with "curing", "cutting", "curling". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "cunning"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cunning" is /ˈkʌnɪŋ/. 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 "cunning"?
From Middle English cunning, kunning, konnyng, alteration of earlier Middle English cunninde, kunnende, cunnand, from Old English cunnende, present participle of cunnan (“to know how to, be able to”), equivalent to con + -ing. Cognate with Scots c... 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 "cunning", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

cracker#15,995discord#16,006empress#16,013Farrell#16,022

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

dorsal9 variantscandid9 variantsgadget9 variantsgreasy9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list