image

/ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/

//ˈɪm.ɪdʒ// noun

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

"image" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“image” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,225. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,225
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
16
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A visual or other representation of the external form of something in art.

Corpus desk

Index EN-image · image · English

image · rank #1,225 · 6 variants · 16 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,225
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 16 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH hurt

Nearest frequency peer: hurt (-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 “image”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “image” 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).

image vs IMG
0% similar
image vs IME
0% similar
image vs imam
60% similar

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

Key facts for image
PropertyValue
Headwordimage
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,225
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs16
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “image”

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).imagelands 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 “hurt” (#1,224), “insurance” (#1,226), “growing” (#1,223). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “image” is #1,225. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around image (IPA /ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,225 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 10 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for image, with forms such as "iamge", "imaeg", and "imagge". 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 16 confusable-pair relationships, "IMG", "IME", "imam", 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 ymage, borrowed from Old French image, from Latin imāgō (“a copy, likeness, image”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym-; the same PIE root is the source of imitari (“to copy, imitate”); see imitate. Doublet of imago. The correct English form is image, spelled I-M-A-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A visual or other representation of the external form of something in art.
  2. 2
    A visual or other representation of the external form of something in art.
  3. 3
    A mental picture of something not real or not present.
  4. 4
    A statue or idol.
  5. 5
    A file that contains all information needed to produce a live working copy. (See disk image and image copy.)
  6. 6
    A characteristic of a person, group or company etc., style, manner of dress, how one is or wishes to be perceived by others.
  7. 7
    The value a function maps some argument to.
  8. 8
    The subset of the codomain of a function comprising those elements that are the image of some element of its domain.
  9. 9
    A form of interference: a weaker "copy" of a strong signal that occurs at a different frequency.
  10. 10
    Show; appearance; cast.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The Bible forbids the worship of graven images.
  2. The Citizens in their rage, imagining that euery poſt in the Churche had bin one of yᵉ Souldyers, ſhot habbe or nabbe at randon^([sic – meaning random]) uppe to the Roode lofte, and to the Chancell, leauing ſome of theyr arrowes ſticking in the Images.

Etymology

From Middle English ymage, borrowed from Old French image, from Latin imāgō (“a copy, likeness, image”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym-; the same PIE root is the source of imitari (“to copy, imitate”); see imitate. Doublet of imago.

Synonyms

pictureideavaluerange

This word in other languages

imagen(Español)image(Français)Bild(Deutsch)imagem(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • iamge
  • imaeg
  • imagge
  • imgae
  • immage
  • miage

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

iamge2imaeg2imagge1imgae2immage1miage2
Edit distance from "image"

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 "image"?
"image" is spelled I-M-A-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/.
What does "image" mean?
As a noun, "image" means: A visual or other representation of the external form of something in art.
What words are commonly confused with "image"?
"image" is commonly confused with "IMG", "IME", "imam". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "image"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "image" is /ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/. 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 "image"?
From Middle English ymage, borrowed from Old French image, from Latin imāgō (“a copy, likeness, image”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eym-; the same PIE root is the source of imitari (“to copy, imitate”); see imitate. Doublet of imago. 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 "image", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

meant#1,228floor#1,221reach#1,233brain#1,215

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

hurt6 variantsannual6 variantsplus6 variantsRussia6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list