ease

/iːz/

//iːz// noun

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

"ease" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ease” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #4,015) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#4,015
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Lack of difficulty; the ability to do something easily.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ease · ease · English

ease · rank #4,015 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,015
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH extend

Nearest frequency peer: extend (+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.

Frequency neighbours of confusable “ease”

Peers at similar corpus weight, separate from look-alike pairs below

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “ease” against nearest ranked English headwords, not a reprint of the confusable-pair desk.

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).

ease vs ES
0% similar
ease vs ee
50% similar
ease vs eat
50% similar

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

Key facts for ease
PropertyValue
Headwordease
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/iːz/
Letters4
Frequency rank#4,015
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “ease”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).easelands 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 “extend” (#4,016), “deny” (#4,013), “fame” (#4,017). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “ease” is #4,015. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for ease is neighbouring look-alikes ("ES", "ee", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /iːz/. Frequency #4,015 among 2,246 “E” headwords. 12 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for ease, with forms such as "aese", "eaes", and "easse". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ES", "ee", "eat", 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 ese, eise, aise, from Anglo-Norman ese (“ease”), from Old French eise, aise (“elbow room; opportunity”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Apparently related to Provençal ais, Italian agio and asio, Sicilian aciu and Portuguese azo. Somet… The correct English form is ease, spelled E-A-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Lack of difficulty; the ability to do something easily.
  2. 2
    Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness
  3. 3
    Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness
  4. 4
    Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness
  5. 5
    Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness
  6. 6
    Comfort, a state or quality lacking unpleasantness
  7. 7
    Relief, an end to discomfort
  8. 8
    Relief, an end to discomfort
  9. 9
    Relief, an end to discomfort
  10. 10
    Relief, an end to discomfort
  11. 11
    A convenience; a luxury.
  12. 12
    A relief; an easement.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He played the ukelele with ease.
  2. The ease of lifting the weight, despite lack of skill, came from her pure strength.

Etymology

From Middle English ese, eise, aise, from Anglo-Norman ese (“ease”), from Old French eise, aise (“elbow room; opportunity”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Apparently related to Provençal ais, Italian agio and asio, Sicilian aciu and Portuguese azo. Sometimes ascribed to Vulgar Latin *āsia or *āsium, possibly from Latin ānsa (“handle, haft”) or Frankish *ansiju (“handle, loophole, eyelet; cup-handle; arms akimbo, elbow room”), but more often derived from Vulgar Latin *adjace(m), from Latin adjacēns (“adjacent, neighbouring”), present participle of adjaceō (“lie next to, border on”), though the forms and senses are difficult to trace clearly. Alternatively, possibly from a non-Latin source such as Germanic or Celtic on the basis of the conflicting forms which appear in various Romance languages. Compare Old English īeþe (“easy”), Gothic 𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐌹 (azēti, “ease; pleasure”), *𐌰𐌶𐌴𐍄𐍃 (*azēts, “easy”), Breton eaz, ez (“easy”), Irish adhais (“easy; leisure”). See also eath. The verb is from Middle English esen, ultimately of the same origin.

This word in other languages

facilidad(Español)facilité(Français)Leichtigkeit(Deutsch)habilidade(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aese
  • eaes
  • easse
  • esae

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

aese2eaes2easse1esae2
Edit distance from "ease"

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 "ease"?
"ease" is spelled E-A-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /iːz/.
What does "ease" mean?
As a noun, "ease" means: Lack of difficulty; the ability to do something easily.
What words are commonly confused with "ease"?
"ease" is commonly confused with "ES", "ee", "eat". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "ease"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ease" is /iːz/. 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 "ease"?
From Middle English ese, eise, aise, from Anglo-Norman ese (“ease”), from Old French eise, aise (“elbow room; opportunity”), of uncertain and obscure origin. Apparently related to Provençal ais, Italian agio and asio, Sicilian aciu and Portuguese ... 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 "ease", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

deny#4,013fame#4,017bull#4,005Kate#4,027

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list