# genus

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈdʒiːnəs/ · frequency rank #10,701

## Definitions
1. A category in the classification of organisms, ranking below family (Lat. familia) and above species.
2. A category in the classification of organisms, ranking below family (Lat. familia) and above species.
3. A group with common attributes.
4. A natural number representing any of several related measures of the complexity of a given manifold or graph.
5. Within a definition, a broader category of the defined concept.
6. A type of tuning or intonation, used within an Ancient Greek tetrachord.

## Etymology
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *ǵenh₁-
Proto-Indo-European *-os
Proto-Indo-European *ǵénh₁os
Latin genusbor.
English genus
Borrowed from Latin genus (“birth, origin, a race, sort, kind”) from the root gen- in Latin gignō (“to beget, produce”). Doublet of gender and genre, further related to kin.

## Easily confused with
- **Gus** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genus-vs-gus)
- **GNU** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genus-vs-gnu)
- **gets** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genus-vs-gets)
- **guns** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genus-vs-guns)
- **gurus** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genus-vs-gurus)
- **glens** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genus-vs-glens)
- **gene** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gene-vs-genus)
- **gent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gent-vs-genus)
- **gels** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gels-vs-genus)
- **gens** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gens-vs-genus)
- **genre** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genre-vs-genus)
- **genes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genes-vs-genus)
- **gears** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gears-vs-genus)
- **genie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genie-vs-genus)
- **geeks** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/geeks-vs-genus)
- **Genoa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genoa-vs-genus)
- **gents** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gents-vs-genus)
- **genius** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/genius-vs-genus)

## Common misspellings (7)
`egnus`, `gennus`, `gensu`, `genuss`, `geuns`, `ggenus`, `gneus`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/genus