existence
/ɛɡˈzɪs.təns/
"existence" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“existence” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,732. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #2,732
- frequency rank, English
- 18,836
- “E” headwords
- 14
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The state of being, existing, or occurring; beinghood.
Corpus desk
Index EN-existence · existence · English
existence · rank #2,732 · 14 variants · 1 confusable
- FREQ-COMMON #2,732
- LEN-LONG 9 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
- VAR-HIGH 14 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 18,836
- PHOTO-FINISH error
Nearest frequency peer: error (-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 neighbourhood for “existence”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- earned
earned
97,272 corpus weight
- electronic
electronic
97,271 corpus weight
- error
error
97,270 corpus weight
- existence
existence
97,269 corpus weight
- experiences
experiences
97,268 corpus weight
- expression
expression
97,267 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “existence” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
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 | existence |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ɛɡˈzɪs.təns/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #2,732 |
| Misspellings tracked | 14 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “existence” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 14 spelling variants around existence (IPA /ɛɡˈzɪs.təns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,732 among 18,836 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for existence, with forms such as "eixstence", "exisetnce", and "exisstence". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "existent", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English existence, from Old French existence, from Late Latin existentia (“existence”), from existēns, from existō, exsistō (“I am, I exist”), from ex (“out”) + sistere (“to set, place”) (related to stare (“to stand, to be stood”)), ultimately f… The correct English form is existence, spelled E-X-I-S-T-E-N-C-E.
Definition
- 1The state of being, existing, or occurring; beinghood.
- 2Empirical reality; the substance of the physical universe. (Dictionary of Philosophy; 1968)
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how existence appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
In order to destroy evil, we must first acknowledge its existence.
Fortunate it is for the tranquillity of the new-born infant, if he have any turn for philosophy, that he understands none of the nonsense consecrated by old usage to the commencement of existence.
Etymology
From Middle English existence, from Old French existence, from Late Latin existentia (“existence”), from existēns, from existō, exsistō (“I am, I exist”), from ex (“out”) + sistere (“to set, place”) (related to stare (“to stand, to be stood”)), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *stísteh₂ti, from the root *steh₂- (“stand”). Cognate with Spanish existencia, French existence, German Existenz. Morphologically exist + -ence.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- eixstence
- exisetnce
- exisstence
- existance
- existecne
- existencce
- existenec
- existennce
- existnece
- existtence
- exitsence
- exsitence
- exxistence
- xeistence
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of existence - 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.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "existence", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).
Similar misspelling depth
Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).
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.