inquiry

/ɪnˈkwaɪəɹi/

//ɪnˈkwaɪəɹi// noun

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

"inquiry" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“inquiry” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,681. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,681
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.

Corpus desk

Index EN-inquiry · inquiry · English

inquiry · rank #4,681 · 10 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,681
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH Indonesia

Nearest frequency peer: Indonesia (-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 “inquiry”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “inquiry” 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).

inquiry vs injury
71% similar
inquiry vs inquire
86% similar
inquiry vs inquired
75% similar

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

Key facts for inquiry
PropertyValue
Headwordinquiry
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪnˈkwaɪəɹi/
Letters7
Frequency rank#4,681
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “inquiry”

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).inquirylands 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 “Indonesia” (#4,680), “inspector” (#4,682), “jumped” (#4,683). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “inquiry” is #4,681. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around inquiry (IPA /ɪnˈkwaɪəɹi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #4,681 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for inquiry, with forms such as "innquiry", "inqiury", and "inqquiry". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "injury", "inquire", "inquired", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English enquery, from the Old French verb enquerre, from Latin inquīrō, composed of in- (“in, at, on; into”) + quaerō (“I seek, look for”), of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- (“to acqui… The correct English form is inquiry, spelled I-N-Q-U-I-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.
  2. 2
    A search for truth, information, or knowledge; examination of facts or principles; research; investigation; inquest.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Scientific inquiry
  2. Donald Trump has lashed out against his own supporters, calling them gullible “weaklings” for questioning the transparency of a secretive government inquiry into the late high-profile socialite and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Etymology

From Middle English enquery, from the Old French verb enquerre, from Latin inquīrō, composed of in- (“in, at, on; into”) + quaerō (“I seek, look for”), of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- (“to acquire”). Later respelled to conform to the original Latin spelling, as opposed to the Old French spelling.

This word in other languages

inquisición(Español)enquête(Français)Anfrage(Deutsch)pergunta(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • innquiry
  • inqiury
  • inqquiry
  • inquirry
  • inquiryy
  • inquiyr
  • inquriy
  • inuqiry
  • iqnuiry
  • niquiry

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

innquiry1inqiury2inqquiry1inquirry1inquiryy1inquiyr2inquriy2inuqiry2
Edit distance from "inquiry"

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 "inquiry"?
"inquiry" is spelled I-N-Q-U-I-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnˈkwaɪəɹi/.
What does "inquiry" mean?
As a noun, "inquiry" means: The act of inquiring; a seeking of information by asking questions; interrogation; a question or questioning.
What words are commonly confused with "inquiry"?
"inquiry" is commonly confused with "injury", "inquire", "inquired". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "inquiry"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "inquiry" is /ɪnˈkwaɪəɹi/. 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 "inquiry"?
From Middle English enquery, from the Old French verb enquerre, from Latin inquīrō, composed of in- (“in, at, on; into”) + quaerō (“I seek, look for”), of uncertain origin, but possibly from Proto-Italic *kʷaizeō, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷeh₂- ... 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 "inquiry", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

handled#4,677forgive#4,672emperor#4,667powered#4,700

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

colleges10 variantsarguing10 variantsventure10 variantstribute10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list