index

/ˈɪndɛks/

//ˈɪndɛks// noun

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

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

The verdict

“index” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,628. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,628
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An alphabetical listing of items and their location.

Corpus desk

Index EN-index · index · English

index · rank #2,628 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,628
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH he'd

Nearest frequency peer: he'd (-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 “index”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “index” 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).

index vs Indy
40% similar
index vs Indo
40% similar
index vs Indi
40% similar

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

Key facts for index
PropertyValue
Headwordindex
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɪndɛks/
Letters5
Frequency rank#2,628
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “index”

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).indexlands 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 “he'd” (#2,627), “item” (#2,629), “harder” (#2,626). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “index” is #2,628. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around index (IPA /ˈɪndɛks/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,628 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 14 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for index, with forms such as "idnex", "inddex", and "indexx". 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, "Indy", "Indo", "Indi", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin index (“a discoverer, informer, spy; of things, an indicator, the forefinger, a title, superscription”), from indicō (“point out, show”); see indicate. The correct English form is index, spelled I-N-D-E-X.

Definition

  1. 1
    An alphabetical listing of items and their location.
  2. 2
    The index finger; the forefinger.
  3. 3
    A movable finger on a gauge, scale, etc.
  4. 4
    A symbol resembling a pointing hand, used to direct particular attention to a note or paragraph.
  5. 5
    That which points out; that which shows, indicates, manifests, or discloses.
  6. 6
    A sign; an indication; a token.
  7. 7
    A type of noun where the meaning of the form changes with respect to the context; e.g., 'Today's newspaper' is an indexical form since its referent will differ depending on the context. See also icon and symbol.
  8. 8
    A single number calculated from an array of prices or of quantities.
  9. 9
    A number representing a property or ratio; a coefficient.
  10. 10
    A raised suffix indicating a power.
  11. 11
    An integer or other key indicating the location of data, e.g. within an array, vector, database table, associative array, or hash table.
  12. 12
    A data structure that improves the performance of operations on a table.
  13. 13
    The number of cosets that exist.
  14. 14
    A prologue indicating what follows.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The index of a book lists words or expressions and the pages of the book upon which they are to be found.
  2. He isn't able to find the index of the book.

Etymology

From Latin index (“a discoverer, informer, spy; of things, an indicator, the forefinger, a title, superscription”), from indicō (“point out, show”); see indicate.

This word in other languages

índice(Español)index(Français)Index(Deutsch)índice(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • idnex
  • inddex
  • indexx
  • indxe
  • inedx
  • inndex
  • nidex

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

idnex2inddex1indexx1indxe2inedx2inndex1nidex2
Edit distance from "index"

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 "index"?
"index" is spelled I-N-D-E-X. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪndɛks/.
What does "index" mean?
As a noun, "index" means: An alphabetical listing of items and their location.
What words are commonly confused with "index"?
"index" is commonly confused with "Indy", "Indo", "Indi". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "index"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "index" is /ˈɪndɛks/. 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 "index"?
From Latin index (“a discoverer, informer, spy; of things, an indicator, the forefinger, a title, superscription”), from indicō (“point out, show”); see indicate. 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 "index", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

fruit#2,625bunch#2,614shift#2,644stood#2,645

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

occurred7 variantsbottle7 variantsafford7 variantsteeth7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list