govern

/ˈɡʌv.ən/

//ˈɡʌv.ən// verb

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

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

The verdict

“govern” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,709. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,709
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
12
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To make and administer the public policy and affairs of; to exercise sovereign authority in.

Corpus desk

Index EN-govern · govern · English

govern · rank #11,709 · 9 variants · 12 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #11,709
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 12 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH goodwill

Nearest frequency peer: goodwill (-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 “govern”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “govern” 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).

govern vs Gower
50% similar
govern vs Grover
50% similar
govern vs governs
86% similar

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

Key facts for govern
PropertyValue
Headwordgovern
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈɡʌv.ən/
Letters6
Frequency rank#11,709
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs12
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “govern”

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).governlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “goodwill” (#11,708), “gradual” (#11,710), “gladly” (#11,707). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “govern” is #11,709. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around govern (IPA /ˈɡʌv.ən/), averb. Corpus frequency is #11,709 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 11 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for govern, with forms such as "ggovern", "goevrn", and "govenr". 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 12 confusable-pair relationships, "Gower", "Grover", "governs", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English governen, governe, from Anglo-Norman and Old French governer, guverner, from Latin gubernō, from Ancient Greek κυβερνάω (kubernáō, “to steer, drive, govern”). The correct English form is govern, spelled G-O-V-E-R-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To make and administer the public policy and affairs of; to exercise sovereign authority in.
  2. 2
    To exercise political authority; to run a government.
  3. 3
    To control the actions or behavior of; to keep under control; to restrain.
  4. 4
    To exercise a deciding or determining influence on.
  5. 5
    To have or exercise a determining influence.
  6. 6
    To handle, to manage, to oversee (a matter, an affair, a household, etc.).
  7. 7
    To control the speed, flow etc. of; to regulate.
  8. 8
    To direct the course of, to guide in some direction, to steer.
  9. 9
    To look after, to take care of, to tend to (someone or some plant).
  10. 10
    To manage, to control, to work (a tool or mechanical device).
  11. 11
    To require that a certain preposition, grammatical case, etc. be used with a word.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The old king governed the land wisely.
  2. Americans are not libertarians in the Cato Institute sense of the word, but they are folk libertarians in this sense of impulsive behaviour, which is a feature of American life that anyone who wants to govern the United States, Democratic or Republican, has to be aware of.

Etymology

From Middle English governen, governe, from Anglo-Norman and Old French governer, guverner, from Latin gubernō, from Ancient Greek κυβερνάω (kubernáō, “to steer, drive, govern”).

This word in other languages

gobernar(Español)gouverner(Français)regieren(Deutsch)governar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggovern
  • goevrn
  • govenr
  • governn
  • goverrn
  • govren
  • govvern
  • gvoern
  • ogvern

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of govern - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ggovern1goevrn2govenr2governn1goverrn1govren2govvern1gvoern2
Edit distance from "govern"

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 "govern"?
"govern" is spelled G-O-V-E-R-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡʌv.ən/.
What does "govern" mean?
As a verb, "govern" means: To make and administer the public policy and affairs of; to exercise sovereign authority in.
What words are commonly confused with "govern"?
"govern" is commonly confused with "Gower", "Grover", "governs". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "govern"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "govern" is /ˈɡʌv.ən/. 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 "govern"?
From Middle English governen, governe, from Anglo-Norman and Old French governer, guverner, from Latin gubernō, from Ancient Greek κυβερνάω (kubernáō, “to steer, drive, govern”). 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 "govern", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

gladly#11,707hacker#11,713Hassan#11,717fucker#11,700

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

harness9 variantsintern9 variantsJudith9 variantsdepart9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list