forge

/fɔːd͡ʒ/

//fɔːd͡ʒ// noun

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

"forge" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“forge” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,901. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,901
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A furnace or hearth where metals are heated prior to hammering them into shape.

Corpus desk

Index EN-forge · forge · English

forge · rank #9,901 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,901
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH foremost

Nearest frequency peer: foremost (-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 “forge”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “forge” 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).

forge vs free
60% similar
forge vs form
60% similar
forge vs fort
60% similar

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

Key facts for forge
PropertyValue
Headwordforge
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/fɔːd͡ʒ/
Letters5
Frequency rank#9,901
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “forge”

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).forgelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “foremost” (#9,900), “greenhouse” (#9,902), “folded” (#9,899). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “forge” is #9,901. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around forge (IPA /fɔːd͡ʒ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,901 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for forge, with forms such as "fforge", "fogre", and "foreg". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "free", "form", "fort", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English forge, from Old French forge, early Old French faverge, from Latin fabrica (“workshop”), from faber (“workman in hard materials, smith”) (genitive fabri). Cognate with Franco-Provençal favèrge. Doublet of fabric and fabrica. Computing se… The correct English form is forge, spelled F-O-R-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A furnace or hearth where metals are heated prior to hammering them into shape.
  2. 2
    A workshop in which metals are shaped by heating and hammering them.
  3. 3
    The act of beating or working iron or steel.
  4. 4
    A web-based collaborative platform for developing and sharing software.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Close to the hump-backed bridge on the lane leading into the Hambleden Valley is a mid-19th-century smithy, its inside walls hung with tools of the blacksmith's trade, though decorative wrought-ironwork is now the main product from its glowing forge.
  2. In the greater bodies the forge was easy.

Etymology

From Middle English forge, from Old French forge, early Old French faverge, from Latin fabrica (“workshop”), from faber (“workman in hard materials, smith”) (genitive fabri). Cognate with Franco-Provençal favèrge. Doublet of fabric and fabrica. Computing sense perhaps derived from the early SourceForge service, launched in 1999.

This word in other languages

fragua(Español)forge(Français)Esse(Deutsch)forja(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • fforge
  • fogre
  • foreg
  • forgge
  • forrge
  • froge
  • ofrge

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

fforge1fogre2foreg2forgge1forrge1froge2ofrge2
Edit distance from "forge"

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 "forge"?
"forge" is spelled F-O-R-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is /fɔːd͡ʒ/.
What does "forge" mean?
As a noun, "forge" means: A furnace or hearth where metals are heated prior to hammering them into shape.
What words are commonly confused with "forge"?
"forge" is commonly confused with "free", "form", "fort". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "forge"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "forge" is /fɔːd͡ʒ/. 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 "forge"?
From Middle English forge, from Old French forge, early Old French faverge, from Latin fabrica (“workshop”), from faber (“workman in hard materials, smith”) (genitive fabri). Cognate with Franco-Provençal favèrge. Doublet of fabric and fabrica. Co... 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 "forge", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

hears#9,903Flynn#9,897fines#9,894faint#9,891

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

disco7 variantsdaisy7 variantsQatar7 variantsbuffer7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list