innocence

/ˈɪnəsn̩s/

//ˈɪnəsn̩s// noun

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

"innocence" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“innocence” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,196. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,196
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Absence of responsibility for a crime, tort, etc.

Corpus desk

Index EN-innocence · innocence · English

innocence · rank #9,196 · 12 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,196
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH inning

Nearest frequency peer: inning (-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 “innocence”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “innocence” 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).

innocence vs innocent
78% similar
innocence vs insolence
78% similar

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

Key facts for innocence
PropertyValue
Headwordinnocence
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɪnəsn̩s/
Letters9
Frequency rank#9,196
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “innocence”

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).innocencelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “inning” (#9,195), “investigator” (#9,197), “inland” (#9,194). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “innocence” is #9,196. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around innocence (IPA /ˈɪnəsn̩s/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,196 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for innocence, with forms such as "inncoence", "innocance", and "innoccence". 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, "innocent", "insolence", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English innocence, from Old French innocence, inocence, from Latin innocentia. Doublet of innocency. Displaced native Old English unsċyld. The correct English form is innocence, spelled I-N-N-O-C-E-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Absence of responsibility for a crime, tort, etc.
  2. 2
    Lack of understanding about sensitive subjects such as sexuality and crime.
  3. 3
    Lack of ability or intention to harm or damage.
  4. 4
    Imbecility; mental deficiency.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Her attorney managed to convince the jury of her innocence.
  2. In his innocence, he offered the stranger to bring the package to Paris, never suspecting it contained drugs.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English innocence, from Old French innocence, inocence, from Latin innocentia. Doublet of innocency. Displaced native Old English unsċyld.

Synonyms

blamelessnesscleannessinculpabilityinnocenceinnocencyguiltlessnessunguilt

Antonyms

guilt

This word in other languages

inocencia(Español)innocence(Français)Unschuld(Deutsch)inocência(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • inncoence
  • innocance
  • innoccence
  • innocecne
  • innocencce
  • innocenec
  • innocennce
  • innocnece
  • innoecnce
  • inocence
  • inoncence
  • ninocence

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of innocence - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

inncoence2innocance1innoccence1innocecne2innocencce1innocenec2innocennce1innocnece2
Edit distance from "innocence"

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 "innocence"?
"innocence" is spelled I-N-N-O-C-E-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪnəsn̩s/.
What does "innocence" mean?
As a noun, "innocence" means: Absence of responsibility for a crime, tort, etc.
What words are commonly confused with "innocence"?
"innocence" is commonly confused with "innocent", "insolence". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "innocence"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "innocence" is /ˈɪnəsn̩s/. 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 "innocence"?
Inherited from Middle English innocence, from Old French innocence, inocence, from Latin innocentia. Doublet of innocency. Displaced native Old English unsċyld. 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 "innocence", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Katherine#9,202livestock#9,205fireworks#9,178entertain#9,175

Similar misspelling depth

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

inherent12 variantshumidity12 variantsnotorious12 variantsoutright12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list