identity

/aɪˈdɛntɪti/

//aɪˈdɛntɪti// noun

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

"identity" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“identity” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,255. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,255
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Sameness, identicalness; the quality or fact of (several specified things) being the same.

Corpus desk

Index EN-identity · identity · English

identity · rank #2,255 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,255
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH hits

Nearest frequency peer: hits (-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 “identity”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “identity” 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).

identity vs identify
88% similar

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

Key facts for identity
PropertyValue
Headwordidentity
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/aɪˈdɛntɪti/
Letters8
Frequency rank#2,255
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “identity”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).identitylands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “hits” (#2,254), “journey” (#2,256), “focused” (#2,253). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “identity” is #2,255. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around identity (IPA /aɪˈdɛntɪti/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,255 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for identity, with forms such as "dientity", "iddentity", and "idenitty". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "identify", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French identité, from Latin identitās. The correct English form is identity, spelled I-D-E-N-T-I-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sameness, identicalness; the quality or fact of (several specified things) being the same.
  2. 2
    The difference or character that marks off an individual or collective from the rest of the same kind; selfhood; the sense of who something or someone or oneself is, or the recurring characteristics that enable the recognition of such an individual or group by others or themselves.
  3. 3
    A name or persona—a mask or appearance one presents to the world—by which one is known.
  4. 4
    An equation which always holds true regardless of the choice of input variables.
  5. 5
    Any function which maps all elements of its domain to themselves.
  6. 6
    An element of an algebraic structure which, when applied to another element under an operation in that structure, yields this second element.
  7. 7
    A well-known or famous person.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. […] suggesting the two are different stages of the same species. The identity of the two species is further suggested by allozyme analysis […]
  2. I've been through so many changes, I have no sense of identity.

Etymology

From Middle French identité, from Latin identitās.

This word in other languages

identidad(Español)identité(Français)Identität(Deutsch)identidade(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • dientity
  • iddentity
  • idenitty
  • idenntity
  • identitty
  • identityy
  • identiyt
  • identtity
  • identtiy
  • idetnity
  • idnetity
  • iedntity

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of identity - 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.

dientity2iddentity1idenitty2idenntity1identitty1identityy1identiyt2identtity1
Edit distance from "identity"

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 "identity"?
"identity" is spelled I-D-E-N-T-I-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /aɪˈdɛntɪti/.
What does "identity" mean?
As a noun, "identity" means: Sameness, identicalness; the quality or fact of (several specified things) being the same.
What words are commonly confused with "identity"?
"identity" is commonly confused with "identify". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "identity"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "identity" is /aɪˈdɛntɪti/. 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 "identity"?
From Middle French identité, from Latin identitās. 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 "identity", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

maintain#2,260numerous#2,263revealed#2,268affected#2,277

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

aircraft12 variantsargument12 variantsrecorded12 variantsextended12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list