dozen

/ˈdʌzən/

//ˈdʌzən// noun

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

"dozen" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dozen” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,939 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#3,939
frequency rank, English
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A set of twelve.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

dozen vs dozens
83% similar
dozen vs dozing
67% similar
dozen vs don
60% similar

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

Key facts for dozen
PropertyValue
Headworddozen
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈdʌzən/
Letters5
Frequency rank#3,939
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “dozen” 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). dozen 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 dozen is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdʌzən/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,939 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for dozen, with forms such as "ddozen", "doezn", and "dozenn". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "dozens", "dozing", "don", 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 dozen, dozein, doseyne, from Old French dozaine (“a group of twelve”) (Modern French douzaine), from doze (“twelve”) + -aine (“-ish”), from Latin duodecim (“twelve”) (from duo (“two”) + decem (“ten”)) + -ana (“-ish”). The correct English form is dozen, spelled D-O-Z-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A set of twelve.
  2. 2
    A large, unspecified number of, comfortably estimated in small multiples of twelve, thus generally implied to be significantly more than ten or twelve, but less than perhaps one or two hundred; many.
  3. 3
    An old English measure of ore containing 12 hundredweight.
  4. 4
    The number twelve.

Etymology

From Middle English dozen, dozein, doseyne, from Old French dozaine (“a group of twelve”) (Modern French douzaine), from doze (“twelve”) + -aine (“-ish”), from Latin duodecim (“twelve”) (from duo (“two”) + decem (“ten”)) + -ana (“-ish”).

Synonyms

a great deal ofa lot ofheap ofhundred ofload oflot ofmanymillion ofscore ofscad ofthousand of

Antonyms

few

This word in other languages

docena(Español)douzaine(Français)Dutzend(Deutsch)centena(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ddozen,doezn,dozenn,dozne,dozzen,dzoen,odzen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ddozen1doezn2dozenn1dozne2dozzen1dzoen2odzen2
Edit distance from "dozen"

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 "dozen"?
"dozen" is spelled D-O-Z-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdʌzən/.
What does "dozen" mean?
As a noun, "dozen" means: A set of twelve.
What words are commonly confused with "dozen"?
"dozen" is commonly confused with "dozens", "dozing", "don". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dozen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dozen" is /ˈdʌzən/. 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 "dozen"?
From Middle English dozen, dozein, doseyne, from Old French dozaine (“a group of twelve”) (Modern French douzaine), from doze (“twelve”) + -aine (“-ish”), from Latin duodecim (“twelve”) (from duo (“two”) + decem (“ten”)) + -ana (“-ish”). 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 “dozen”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is D-O-Z-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈdʌzən/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “dozens” - see the side-by-side comparison. dozen vs dozens
  • 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