insecure

/ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)/

//ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)// adj

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

"insecure" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“insecure” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #10,871. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#10,871
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Not secure.

Corpus desk

Index EN-insecure · insecure · English

insecure · rank #10,871 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #10,871
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH insanity

Nearest frequency peer: insanity (-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 “insecure”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “insecure” 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).

insecure vs insure
75% similar

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

Key facts for insecure
PropertyValue
Headwordinsecure
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)/
Letters8
Frequency rank#10,871
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “insecure”

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).insecurelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “insanity” (#10,870), “inflammatory” (#10,869), “integrate” (#10,873). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “insecure” is #10,871. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around insecure (IPA /ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #10,871 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for insecure, with forms such as "inescure", "innsecure", and "insceure". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "insure", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From in- + secure, or from Medieval Latin insēcūrus, itself from in- (“in-, un-, non-”) + sēcūrus (“safe, certain”). Piecewise doublet of unsecure and unsure. The correct English form is insecure, spelled I-N-S-E-C-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Not secure.
  2. 2
    Not comfortable or confident in oneself or in certain situations.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The Yung-li ruler, finding Chao-ch’ing insecure, fled to Wu-chou (梧州), Kuangsi province, and then to Kuei-lin, vigorously pursued by the Manchu army.
  2. He's a nice guy and all, but seems to be rather insecure around other people.

Etymology

From in- + secure, or from Medieval Latin insēcūrus, itself from in- (“in-, un-, non-”) + sēcūrus (“safe, certain”). Piecewise doublet of unsecure and unsure.

Antonyms

confidentself-confident

This word in other languages

inseguro(Español)insécurisé(Français)unsicher(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • inescure
  • innsecure
  • insceure
  • inseccure
  • insecrue
  • insecuer
  • insecurre
  • inseucre
  • inssecure
  • isnecure
  • nisecure

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

inescure2innsecure1insceure2inseccure1insecrue2insecuer2insecurre1inseucre2
Edit distance from "insecure"

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 "insecure"?
"insecure" is spelled I-N-S-E-C-U-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)/.
What does "insecure" mean?
As an adjective, "insecure" means: Not secure.
What words are commonly confused with "insecure"?
"insecure" is commonly confused with "insure". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "insecure"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "insecure" is /ɪnsəˈkjʊə(ɹ)/. 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 "insecure"?
From in- + secure, or from Medieval Latin insēcūrus, itself from in- (“in-, un-, non-”) + sēcūrus (“safe, certain”). Piecewise doublet of unsecure and unsure. 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 "insecure", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

insanity#10,870Lebanese#10,880lecturer#10,881generals#10,850

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Marilyn11 variantsempathy11 variantsdisguise11 variantsperceive11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list