excise

/ˈɛkˌsaɪz/

//ˈɛkˌsaɪz// noun

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

"excise" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“excise” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #20,630. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,630
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
12
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A tax charged on goods produced within the country (as opposed to customs duties, charged on goods from outside the country).

Corpus desk

Index EN-excise · excise · English

excise · rank #20,630 · 8 variants · 12 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #20,630
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 12 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH Ewing

Nearest frequency peer: Ewing (-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 “excise”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “excise” 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).

excise vs exist
67% similar
excise vs exile
67% similar
excise vs excuse
83% similar

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

Key facts for excise
PropertyValue
Headwordexcise
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛkˌsaɪz/
Letters6
Frequency rank#20,630
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs12
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “excise”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).exciselands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Ewing” (#20,629), “expel” (#20,631), “eternally” (#20,628). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “excise” is #20,630. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around excise (IPA /ˈɛkˌsaɪz/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #20,630 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A tax charged on goods produced within the country (as opposed to customs duties, charged on goods from outside the country).".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for excise, with forms such as "ecxise", "exccise", and "excies". 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 12 confusable-pair relationships, "exist", "exile", "excuse", 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 Dutch excijs, altered under the influence of Latin excisus (“cut out, removed”), from earlier accijs (“tax”), from Old French acceis (“tax, assessment”) (whence modern French accise), from Vulgar Latin *accensum, ultimately from Latin ad + censu… The correct English form is excise, spelled E-X-C-I-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A tax charged on goods produced within the country (as opposed to customs duties, charged on goods from outside the country).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Andrew Houſtoun and Adam Muſhet, being Tackſmen of the Excize, did Imploy Thomas Rue to be their Collector, and gave him a Sallary of 30. pound Sterling for a year.
  2. 1755, Samuel Johnson, A Dictionary of the English Language, "excise", A hateful tax levied upon commodities, and adjudged not by the common judges of property, but wretches hired by those to whom Excise is paid.

Etymology

From Middle Dutch excijs, altered under the influence of Latin excisus (“cut out, removed”), from earlier accijs (“tax”), from Old French acceis (“tax, assessment”) (whence modern French accise), from Vulgar Latin *accensum, ultimately from Latin ad + census (“tax, census”).

Synonyms

excise tax

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ecxise
  • exccise
  • excies
  • excisse
  • excsie
  • exicse
  • exxcise
  • xecise

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of excise - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ecxise2exccise1excies2excisse1excsie2exicse2exxcise1xecise2
Edit distance from "excise"

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 "excise"?
"excise" is spelled E-X-C-I-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛkˌsaɪz/.
What does "excise" mean?
As a noun, "excise" means: A tax charged on goods produced within the country (as opposed to customs duties, charged on goods from outside the country).
What words are commonly confused with "excise"?
"excise" is commonly confused with "exist", "exile", "excuse". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "excise"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "excise" is /ˈɛkˌsaɪz/. 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 "excise"?
From Middle Dutch excijs, altered under the influence of Latin excisus (“cut out, removed”), from earlier accijs (“tax”), from Old French acceis (“tax, assessment”) (whence modern French accise), from Vulgar Latin *accensum, ultimately from Latin ... 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 "excise", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

etched#20,627fruity#20,642dodger#20,617dismay#20,613

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

fitch8 variantsfrown8 variantsgodly8 variantsGraeme8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list