eternal
/ɪˈtɜː.nl̩/
"eternal" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“eternal” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #5,964 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #5,964
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Lasting forever; unending.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | eternal |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ɪˈtɜː.nl̩/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #5,964 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “eternal” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for eternal is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪˈtɜː.nl̩/. Corpus data places it at rank #5,964 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 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for eternal, with forms such as "eetrnal", "etenral", and "eteranl". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "external", "ethereal", "eternally", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English eternal, from Old French eternal, from Late Latin aeternālis, from Latin aeternus (“eternal”), from aevum (“age”). Displaced native Old English ēċe. The correct English form is eternal, spelled E-T-E-R-N-A-L.
Definition
- 1Lasting forever; unending.
- 2Existing outside time; as opposed to sempiternal, existing within time but everlastingly.
- 3Constant; perpetual; ceaseless; ever-present.
- 4Exceedingly great or bad; used as an intensifier.
Etymology
From Middle English eternal, from Old French eternal, from Late Latin aeternālis, from Latin aeternus (“eternal”), from aevum (“age”). Displaced native Old English ēċe.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: eetrnal,etenral,eteranl,eternall,eternla,eternnal,eterrnal,etrenal,etternal,teernal
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of eternal - 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.
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
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Using “eternal”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is E-T-E-R-N-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪˈtɜː.nl̩/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “external” - see the side-by-side comparison. eternal vs external
- 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.