engage

Name: engage, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/

//ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ// verb

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“engage” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,878 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#3,878
frequency rank, English: 6
letters: 8
tracked misspellings: 7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To interact socially.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

engage vs engle

67% similar

engage vs engine

67% similar

engage vs engaged

86% similar

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

Key facts for engage
Property	Value
Headword	engage
Language	English
Part of speech	Verb
IPA	/ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/
Letters	6
Frequency rank	#3,878
Misspellings tracked	8
Confusable pairs	7
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “engage” 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). engage lands here:

#3,878

#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 engage is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,878 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for engage, with forms such as "egnage", "enagge", and "engaeg". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "engle", "engine", "engaged", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English engagen, from Old French engagier (“to pledge, engage”), from Frankish *anwadjōn (“to pledge”), from Proto-Germanic *an-, *andi- + Proto-Germanic *wadjōną (“to pledge, secure”), from Proto-Germanic *wadją (“pledge, guarantee”), from Prot… The correct English form is engage, spelled E-N-G-A-G-E.

Definition

1
To interact socially.
2
To interact socially.
3
To interact socially.
4
To interact antagonistically.
5
To interact antagonistically.
6
To interact contractually.
7
To interact contractually.
8
To interact contractually.
9
To interact contractually.
10
To interact mechanically.
11
To interact mechanically.
12
To entangle.

Etymology

From Middle English engagen, from Old French engagier (“to pledge, engage”), from Frankish *anwadjōn (“to pledge”), from Proto-Germanic *an-, *andi- + Proto-Germanic *wadjōną (“to pledge, secure”), from Proto-Germanic *wadją (“pledge, guarantee”), from Proto-Indo-European *wedʰ- (“to pledge, redeem a pledge; guarantee, bail”), equivalent to en- + gage. Cognate with Old English anwedd (“pledge, security”), Old English weddian (“to engage, covenant, undertake”), German wetten (“to bet, wager”), Icelandic veðja (“to wager”). More at wed.

Antonyms

disengage

This word in other languages

entablar(Español)attirer l'attention(Français)beschäftigen(Deutsch)contratar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: egnage,enagge,engaeg,engagge,enggae,enggage,enngage,negage

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

Edit distance from "engage"

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 "engage"?

"engage" is spelled E-N-G-A-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/.

What does "engage" mean?

As a verb, "engage" means: To interact socially.

What words are commonly confused with "engage"?

"engage" is commonly confused with "engle", "engine", "engaged". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "engage"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "engage" is /ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/. 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 "engage"?

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 “engage”

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

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