importance

/ɪmˈpɔːtəns/

//ɪmˈpɔːtəns// noun

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

"importance" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“importance” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,683. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,683
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The quality or condition of being important or worthy of note.

Corpus desk

Index EN-importance · importance · English

importance · rank #2,683 · 16 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,683
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH identify

Nearest frequency peer: identify (-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 “importance”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “importance” 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).

importance vs important
80% similar
importance vs impotence
80% similar

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

Key facts for importance
PropertyValue
Headwordimportance
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪmˈpɔːtəns/
Letters10
Frequency rank#2,683
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “importance”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).importancelands 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 “identify” (#2,682), “Kevin” (#2,684), “hopefully” (#2,681). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “importance” is #2,683. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around importance (IPA /ɪmˈpɔːtəns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,683 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for importance, with forms such as "immportance", "imoprtance", and "imporatnce". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "important", "impotence", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English importaunce, from Middle French importance, from Medieval Latin importantia. By surface analysis, import (“to be important”) + -ance. The correct English form is importance, spelled I-M-P-O-R-T-A-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The quality or condition of being important or worthy of note.
  2. 2
    significance or prominence.
  3. 3
    personal status or standing.
  4. 4
    Something of importance.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. It was incessant matter for amazement how these Olympians would talk over our heads - during meals, for instance - of this or the other social or political inanity, under the delusion that these pale phantasms of reality were among the importances of life.

Etymology

From Middle English importaunce, from Middle French importance, from Medieval Latin importantia. By surface analysis, import (“to be important”) + -ance.

This word in other languages

importancia(Español)importance(Français)Wichtigkeit(Deutsch)importância(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • immportance
  • imoprtance
  • imporatnce
  • imporrtance
  • importacne
  • importancce
  • importanec
  • importannce
  • importence
  • importnace
  • importtance
  • impotrance
  • impportance
  • improtance
  • ipmortance
  • miportance

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

immportance1imoprtance2imporatnce2imporrtance1importacne2importancce1importanec2importannce1
Edit distance from "importance"

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 "importance"?
"importance" is spelled I-M-P-O-R-T-A-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪmˈpɔːtəns/.
What does "importance" mean?
As a noun, "importance" means: The quality or condition of being important or worthy of note.
What words are commonly confused with "importance"?
"importance" is commonly confused with "important", "impotence". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "importance"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "importance" is /ɪmˈpɔːtəns/. 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 "importance"?
From Middle English importaunce, from Middle French importance, from Medieval Latin importantia. By surface analysis, import (“to be important”) + -ance. 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 "importance", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

frequently#2,678employment#2,674performing#2,692depression#2,670

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

experiences16 variantscompetitive16 variantsresistance16 variantspoliticians16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list