gin

/d͡ʒɪn/

//d͡ʒɪn// noun

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

"gin" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“gin” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #11,550) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#11,550
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A colourless non-aged alcoholic liquor made by distilling fermented grains such as barley, corn, oats or rye with juniper berries; the base for many cocktails.

Corpus desk

Index EN-gin · gin · English

gin · rank #11,550 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #11,550
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH Gerard

Nearest frequency peer: Gerard (-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.

Frequency neighbours of confusable “gin”

Peers at similar corpus weight, separate from look-alike pairs below

corpus weight

What this shows Bars place “gin” against nearest ranked English headwords, not a reprint of the confusable-pair desk.

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).

gin vs go
33% similar
gin vs GM
0% similar
gin vs GP
0% similar

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

Key facts for gin
PropertyValue
Headwordgin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/d͡ʒɪn/
Letters3
Frequency rank#11,550
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus rank beside confusables of “gin”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).ginlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Gerard” (#11,549), “freelance” (#11,548), “granting” (#11,552). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “gin” is #11,550. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for gin is neighbouring look-alikes ("go", "GM", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /d͡ʒɪn/. Frequency #11,550 among 2,313 “G” headwords. 3 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

gin doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "go", "GM", "GP", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Abbreviation of geneva, alteration of Dutch genever (“juniper”) from Old French genevre (modern French genièvre), from Vulgar Latin ziniperus, from Latin iūniperus (“juniper”). Hence gin rummy (first attested 1941). The correct English form is gin, spelled G-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A colourless non-aged alcoholic liquor made by distilling fermented grains such as barley, corn, oats or rye with juniper berries; the base for many cocktails.
  2. 2
    Gin rummy.
  3. 3
    Drawing the best card or combination of cards.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Johnny Chan held jack-nine, and hit gin when a queen-ten-eight board was dealt out.

Etymology

Abbreviation of geneva, alteration of Dutch genever (“juniper”) from Old French genevre (modern French genièvre), from Vulgar Latin ziniperus, from Latin iūniperus (“juniper”). Hence gin rummy (first attested 1941).

This word in other languages

ginebra(Español)gin(Français)Gin(Deutsch)gim(Português)

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 "gin"?
"gin" is spelled G-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /d͡ʒɪn/.
What does "gin" mean?
As a noun, "gin" means: A colourless non-aged alcoholic liquor made by distilling fermented grains such as barley, corn, oats or rye with juniper berries; the base for many cocktails.
What words are commonly confused with "gin"?
"gin" is commonly confused with "go", "GM", "GP". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gin" is /d͡ʒɪn/. 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 "gin"?
Abbreviation of geneva, alteration of Dutch genever (“juniper”) from Old French genevre (modern French genièvre), from Vulgar Latin ziniperus, from Latin iūniperus (“juniper”). Hence gin rummy (first attested 1941). 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 "gin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

reg#11,592API#11,501RNA#11,599ale#11,500

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list