insure

/ɪnˈʃɔː(ɹ)/

//ɪnˈʃɔː(ɹ)// verb

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

"insure" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“insure” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,164. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,164
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To provide for compensation if some specified risk occurs. Often agreed by policy (contract) to offer financial compensation in case of an accident, theft or other undesirable event.

Corpus desk

Index EN-insure · insure · English

insure · rank #17,164 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,164
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH incorporation

Nearest frequency peer: incorporation (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “insure”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “insure” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

insure vs issue
67% similar
insure vs insured
86% similar
insure vs insurer
86% similar

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

Key facts for insure
PropertyValue
Headwordinsure
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ɪnˈʃɔː(ɹ)/
Letters6
Frequency rank#17,164
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “insure” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).insurelands 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 “incorporation” (#17,163), “joyful” (#17,165), “hypocrite” (#17,162). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around insure (IPA /ɪnˈʃɔː(ɹ)/), averb. Corpus frequency is #17,164 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for insure, with forms such as "innsure", "insrue", and "inssure". 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, "issue", "insured", "insurer", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in c. 1440, as a variant of Middle English ensuren (from Anglo-Norman enseurer, itself from en- + seür (“sure”), probably influenced by Old French asseürer (“to assure”)); took on its particular sense of "make safe against loss by payment of … The correct English form is insure, spelled I-N-S-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To provide for compensation if some specified risk occurs. Often agreed by policy (contract) to offer financial compensation in case of an accident, theft or other undesirable event.
  2. 2
    To deal in such contracts; subscribe to a policy of insurance
  3. 3
    Alternative spelling of ensure; to make sure or certain of; guarantee.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I'm not insured against burglary.
  2. We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Etymology

First attested in c. 1440, as a variant of Middle English ensuren (from Anglo-Norman enseurer, itself from en- + seür (“sure”), probably influenced by Old French asseürer (“to assure”)); took on its particular sense of "make safe against loss by payment of premiums" in 1635, replacing assure. Doublet of ensure.

This word in other languages

asegurar(Español)assurer(Français)versichern(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • innsure
  • insrue
  • inssure
  • insuer
  • inusre
  • isnure
  • nisure

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of insure - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

innsure1insrue2inssure1insuer2inusre2isnure2nisure2
Edit distance from "insure"

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 "insure"?
"insure" is spelled I-N-S-U-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnˈʃɔː(ɹ)/.
What does "insure" mean?
As a verb, "insure" means: To provide for compensation if some specified risk occurs. Often agreed by policy (contract) to offer financial compensation in case of an accident, theft or other undesirable event.
What words are commonly confused with "insure"?
"insure" is commonly confused with "issue", "insured", "insurer". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "insure"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "insure" is /ɪnˈʃɔː(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 "insure"?
First attested in c. 1440, as a variant of Middle English ensuren (from Anglo-Norman enseurer, itself from en- + seür (“sure”), probably influenced by Old French asseürer (“to assure”)); took on its particular sense of "make safe against loss by p... 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 "insure", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

joyful#17,165hoodie#17,158hinted#17,157gutted#17,153

Similar misspelling depth

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

Judah7 variantsKabul7 variantslatex7 variantsgorge7 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "insure". Here's where to go from here.

  • "insure" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "issue". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #17,164 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "I" letter cohort. I–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list