gospel

/ˈɡɒspəl/

//ˈɡɒspəl// noun

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

"gospel" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“gospel” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #5,328 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#5,328
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The first section of the Christian New Testament scripture, comprising the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, concerned with the birth, ministry, passion, and resurrection of Jesus.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

gospel vs Gopal
50% similar
gospel vs gasped
67% similar
gospel vs Goshen
50% similar

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

Key facts for gospel
PropertyValue
Headwordgospel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɡɒspəl/
Letters6
Frequency rank#5,328
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “gospel” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for gospel is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɡɒspəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #5,328 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for gospel, with forms such as "ggospel", "gopsel", and "gosepl". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "Gopal", "gasped", "Goshen", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gospel, gospell, godspel, godspell, goddspell, from Old English godspell (“gospel”), corresponding to God + spell (“talk, tale, story”), literally “the message of God”, believed to be an alteration of earlier *gōdspell (literally “good n… The correct English form is gospel, spelled G-O-S-P-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    The first section of the Christian New Testament scripture, comprising the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, concerned with the birth, ministry, passion, and resurrection of Jesus.
  2. 2
    An account of those aspects of Jesus' life, generally written during the first several centuries of the Common Era.
  3. 3
    The teaching of Divine grace as distinguished from the Law or Divine commandments.
  4. 4
    A message expected to have positive reception or effect, one promoted as offering important (or even infallible) guiding principles.
  5. 5
    That which is absolutely authoritative (definitive).
  6. 6
    Gospel music.

Etymology

From Middle English gospel, gospell, godspel, godspell, goddspell, from Old English godspell (“gospel”), corresponding to God + spell (“talk, tale, story”), literally “the message of God”, believed to be an alteration of earlier *gōdspell (literally “good news”), used to translate ecclesiastical Latin bona annūntiātiō, itself a translation of Ecclesiastical Latin ēvangelium / Ancient Greek εὐαγγέλιον (euangélion, “evangel”, literally “good news”) (English evangel). Compare Old Saxon gōdspel and godspell (“gospel”), Old High German and Middle High German gotspel (“gospel”), Icelandic guðspjall (“gospel”), and the modern calque Malayalam സുവിശേഷം (suviśēṣaṁ).

Synonyms

evangel

This word in other languages

evangelio(Español)évangile(Français)Evangelium(Deutsch)evangelho(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ggospel,gopsel,gosepl,gospell,gosple,gosppel,gosspel,gsopel,ogspel

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggospel1gopsel2gosepl2gospell1gosple2gosppel1gosspel1gsopel2
Edit distance from "gospel"

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 "gospel"?
"gospel" is spelled G-O-S-P-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡɒspəl/.
What does "gospel" mean?
As a noun, "gospel" means: The first section of the Christian New Testament scripture, comprising the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, concerned with the birth, ministry, passion, and resurrection of Jesus.
What words are commonly confused with "gospel"?
"gospel" is commonly confused with "Gopal", "gasped", "Goshen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gospel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gospel" is /ˈɡɒspəl/. 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 "gospel"?
From Middle English gospel, gospell, godspel, godspell, goddspell, from Old English godspell (“gospel”), corresponding to God + spell (“talk, tale, story”), literally “the message of God”, believed to be an alteration of earlier *gōdspell (literal... 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.

Using “gospel”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is G-O-S-P-E-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈɡɒspəl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Gopal” - see the side-by-side comparison. gospel vs Gopal
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list