Gothic
/ˈɡɒθ.ɪk/
"gothic" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Gothic” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #12,056 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #12,056
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An extinct Germanic language, once spoken by the Goths.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Gothic |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ˈɡɒθ.ɪk/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #12,056 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Gothic” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Gothic is 6 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɡɒθ.ɪk/. Corpus data places it at rank #12,056 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 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 Gothic, with forms such as "ggothic", "gohtic", and "gothci". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "Goths", "Gotti", "goth", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Latin gothicus (“Gothic, barbaric”), from Ancient Greek Γοτθικός (Gotthikós), from Ancient Greek Γότθοι (Gótthoi, “Goths”) + -ικός (-ikós, “-ic”), proposed to derive from unattested Gothic *𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌰 (*guta). Equivalent to Goth + -ic. The various u… The correct English form is Gothic, spelled G-O-T-H-I-C.
Definition
- 1An extinct Germanic language, once spoken by the Goths.
- 2Certain moths of the family Noctuidae.
- 3A particular species of moth of the family Noctuidae, Naenia typica.
Etymology
From Late Latin gothicus (“Gothic, barbaric”), from Ancient Greek Γοτθικός (Gotthikós), from Ancient Greek Γότθοι (Gótthoi, “Goths”) + -ικός (-ikós, “-ic”), proposed to derive from unattested Gothic *𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌰 (*guta). Equivalent to Goth + -ic. The various usages of the adjective are introduced nearly simultaneously in the first half of the 17th century. The literal meaning “of the Goths” is found in the 1611 preface of the King James Bible, in reference to the Gothicke tongue. The generalized meaning of “Germanic, Teutonic” appears in the 1640s. Reference to the medieval period in Western Europe, and specifically the architecture of that period (“barbaric style”, initially a term of abuse), also appears in the 1640s, as does reference to “Gothic characters” or “Gothic letters” in typography.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ggothic,gohtic,gothci,gothhic,gothicc,gotihc,gotthic,gtohic,ogthic
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Gothic - 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.
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 "Gothic"?
What does "Gothic" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "Gothic"?
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Using “Gothic”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is G-O-T-H-I-C - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈɡɒθ.ɪk/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Goths” - see the side-by-side comparison. Gothic vs Goths
- 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.