fasting

/ˈfæstɪŋ/

//ˈfæstɪŋ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“fasting” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,514. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,514
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of fast

Corpus desk

Index EN-fasting · fasting · English

fasting · rank #13,514 · 11 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,514
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH fiery

Nearest frequency peer: fiery (+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 “fasting”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “fasting” 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).

fasting vs fusing
71% similar
fasting vs fishing
71% similar
fasting vs fitting
71% similar

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

Key facts for fasting
PropertyValue
Headwordfasting
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈfæstɪŋ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#13,514
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “fasting”

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).fastinglands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “fiery” (#13,515), “EPS” (#13,511), “flipping” (#13,517). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “fasting” is #13,514. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around fasting (IPA /ˈfæstɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #13,514 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of fast".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for fasting, with forms such as "afsting", "fasitng", and "fassting". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "fusing", "fishing", "fitting", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: By surface analysis, fast + -ing. The correct English form is fasting, spelled F-A-S-T-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of fast

Etymology

By surface analysis, fast + -ing.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • afsting
  • fasitng
  • fassting
  • fastign
  • fastingg
  • fastinng
  • fastnig
  • fastting
  • fatsing
  • ffasting
  • fsating

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

afsting2fasitng2fassting1fastign2fastingg1fastinng1fastnig2fastting1
Edit distance from "fasting"

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 "fasting"?
"fasting" is spelled F-A-S-T-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfæstɪŋ/.
What does "fasting" mean?
As a verb, "fasting" means: present participle and gerund of fast
What words are commonly confused with "fasting"?
"fasting" is commonly confused with "fusing", "fishing", "fitting". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "fasting"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fasting" is /ˈfæstɪŋ/. 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 "fasting"?
By surface analysis, fast + -ing. 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 "fasting", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

dungeon#13,504dumbass#13,503Hancock#13,525Ibrahim#13,534

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

flipping11 variantsJamaican11 variantsbrushed11 variantsmastery11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list