inch

/ɪnt͡ʃ/

//ɪnt͡ʃ// noun

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

"inch" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“inch” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #3,067. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#3,067
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An English unit of length equal to 1/12 of a foot or 2.54 cm, conceived as roughly the width of a thumb.

Corpus desk

Index EN-inch · inch · English

inch · rank #3,067 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #3,067
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH improvement

Nearest frequency peer: improvement (-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 “inch”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “inch” 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).

inch vs ink
50% similar
inch vs inn
50% similar
inch vs ins
50% similar

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

Key facts for inch
PropertyValue
Headwordinch
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪnt͡ʃ/
Letters4
Frequency rank#3,067
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “inch”

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).inchlands 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 “improvement” (#3,066), “initially” (#3,068), “hunt” (#3,065). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “inch” is #3,067. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around inch (IPA /ɪnt͡ʃ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #3,067 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for inch, with forms such as "icnh", "incch", and "inchh". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ink", "inn", "ins", 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 ynche, enche, from Old English ynċe, borrowed from Latin uncia (“Roman inch, various similar units”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *óynos (“one”). Cognate with Middle Dutch enke (“thumb, thumb's width, inch”). Doublet of ounce, un… The correct English form is inch, spelled I-N-C-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    An English unit of length equal to 1/12 of a foot or 2.54 cm, conceived as roughly the width of a thumb.
  2. 2
    Any very short distance.
  3. 3
    Any of various similar units of length in other traditional systems of measurement.
  4. 4
    A depth of one inch on the ground, used as a measurement of rainfall.
  5. 5
    A depth of one inch in a glass, used as a rough measurement of alcoholic beverages.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The sledges of the Esquimaux are of large size, varying from six and a half to nine and even eleven feet in length, and from eighteen inches to two feet in breadth.
  2. The term "precision measurement" […] refers to the art of reproducing and controlling dimensions expressed in thousandths of an inch or smaller.

Etymology

From Middle English ynche, enche, from Old English ynċe, borrowed from Latin uncia (“Roman inch, various similar units”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *óynos (“one”). Cognate with Middle Dutch enke (“thumb, thumb's width, inch”). Doublet of ounce, uncia, onça, onza, oka, ouguiya, and awqiyyah.

This word in other languages

pulgada(Español)pouce(Français)Zoll(Deutsch)polegada(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • icnh
  • incch
  • inchh
  • inhc
  • innch
  • nich

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

icnh2incch1inchh1inhc2innch1nich2
Edit distance from "inch"

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 "inch"?
"inch" is spelled I-N-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnt͡ʃ/.
What does "inch" mean?
As a noun, "inch" means: An English unit of length equal to 1/12 of a foot or 2.54 cm, conceived as roughly the width of a thumb.
What words are commonly confused with "inch"?
"inch" is commonly confused with "ink", "inn", "ins". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "inch"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "inch" is /ɪnt͡ʃ/. 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 "inch"?
From Middle English ynche, enche, from Old English ynċe, borrowed from Latin uncia (“Roman inch, various similar units”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *óynos (“one”). Cognate with Middle Dutch enke (“thumb, thumb's width, inch”). Doublet of... 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 "inch", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

hunt#3,065jury#3,070Kong#3,071eric#3,055

Similar misspelling depth

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

smell6 variantsbush6 variantsvast6 variantsgrey6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list