expense

/ɪkˈspɛns/

//ɪkˈspɛns// noun

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

"expense" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“expense” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,855. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,855
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A spending or consuming, often a disbursement of funds.

Corpus desk

Index EN-expense · expense · English

expense · rank #4,855 · 9 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,855
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH essay

Nearest frequency peer: essay (-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 “expense”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “expense” 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).

expense vs exposé
57% similar
expense vs expenses
88% similar
expense vs expensive
78% similar

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

Key facts for expense
PropertyValue
Headwordexpense
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪkˈspɛns/
Letters7
Frequency rank#4,855
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “expense”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).expenselands 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 “essay” (#4,854), “explaining” (#4,856), “Emma” (#4,853). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “expense” is #4,855. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around expense (IPA /ɪkˈspɛns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #4,855 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for expense, with forms such as "epxense", "exepnse", and "expenes". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "exposé", "expenses", "expensive", 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 expense, from Anglo-Norman expense and Old French espense, from Late Latin expēnsa, from Latin expendō. See expend. Doublet of speso. The correct English form is expense, spelled E-X-P-E-N-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A spending or consuming, often a disbursement of funds.
  2. 2
    The elimination or consumption of something, sometimes with the notion of loss or damage to the thing eliminated.
  3. 3
    Loss.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She went to great expense to ensure her children would get the best education.
  2. Buying the car was a big expense, but will be worth it in the long run.

Etymology

From Middle English expense, from Anglo-Norman expense and Old French espense, from Late Latin expēnsa, from Latin expendō. See expend. Doublet of speso.

Synonyms

costchargeoutlaydisbursementexpenditurepayment

This word in other languages

gasto(Español)dépense(Français)Ausgabe(Deutsch)despesa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • epxense
  • exepnse
  • expenes
  • expennse
  • expesne
  • expnese
  • exppense
  • exxpense
  • xepense

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

epxense2exepnse2expenes2expennse1expesne2expnese2exppense1exxpense1
Edit distance from "expense"

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 "expense"?
"expense" is spelled E-X-P-E-N-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪkˈspɛns/.
What does "expense" mean?
As a noun, "expense" means: A spending or consuming, often a disbursement of funds.
What words are commonly confused with "expense"?
"expense" is commonly confused with "exposé", "expenses", "expensive". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "expense"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "expense" is /ɪkˈspɛns/. 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 "expense"?
From Middle English expense, from Anglo-Norman expense and Old French espense, from Late Latin expēnsa, from Latin expendō. See expend. Doublet of speso. 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 "expense", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

earning#4,852graphic#4,858healing#4,860jumping#4,867

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

hiring9 variantsDenver9 variantslaptop9 variantsoutdoor9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list