external
/ɪkˈstɜː.nəl/
"external" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“external” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,893 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #2,893
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Outside of something; on the exterior.
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 | external |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ɪkˈstɜː.nəl/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #2,893 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “external” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for external is 8 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪkˈstɜː.nəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,893 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 11 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for external, with forms such as "etxernal", "exetrnal", and "extenral". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "externally", "eternal", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Middle English, from Medieval Latin externus (“outward, external”), from exter/exterus (“on the outside, outward”). The correct English form is external, spelled E-X-T-E-R-N-A-L.
Definition
- 1Outside of something; on the exterior.
- 2Outside of something; on the exterior.
- 3Outside of something; on the exterior.
- 4Capable of being perceived outwardly.
- 5Capable of being perceived outwardly.
- 6Provided by something or someone outside of the entity (object, group, company etc.) considered.
- 7Relating to or connected with foreign nations or institutions.
- 8Having existence independent of the mind.
- 9For or concerning students registered with and taking the examinations of a university but not resident there.
- 10Not contained in the main computer.
- 11Using a disk or tape drive rather than the main memory.
Etymology
From Late Middle English, from Medieval Latin externus (“outward, external”), from exter/exterus (“on the outside, outward”).
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: etxernal,exetrnal,extenral,exteranl,externall,externla,externnal,exterrnal,extrenal,extternal,exxternal,xeternal
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of external - 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 “external”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is E-X-T-E-R-N-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪkˈstɜː.nəl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “externally” - see the side-by-side comparison. external vs externally
- 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.