intake

/ˈɪnteɪk/

//ˈɪnteɪk// noun

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

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

The verdict

“intake” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,352. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,352
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The place where water, air or other fluid is taken into a pipe or conduit; opposed to outlet.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intake · intake · English

intake · rank #7,352 · 8 variants · 10 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,352
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 10 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH intact

Nearest frequency peer: intact (-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 “intake”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “intake” 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).

intake vs INTHE
0% similar
intake vs invade
67% similar
intake vs invoke
67% similar

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

Key facts for intake
PropertyValue
Headwordintake
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɪnteɪk/
Letters6
Frequency rank#7,352
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs10
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “intake”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).intakelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “intact” (#7,351), “irrelevant” (#7,353), “implies” (#7,350). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intake” is #7,352. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around intake (IPA /ˈɪnteɪk/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #7,352 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 10 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for intake, with forms such as "inatke", "inntake", and "intaek". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 10 confusable-pair relationships, "INTHE", "invade", "invoke", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From English dialectal (Northern England/Scotland), deverbal of take in, equivalent to in- + take. More at in-, take. The correct English form is intake, spelled I-N-T-A-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The place where water, air or other fluid is taken into a pipe or conduit; opposed to outlet.
  2. 2
    The beginning of a contraction or narrowing in a tube or cylinder.
  3. 3
    The quantity taken in.
  4. 4
    An act or instance of taking in.
  5. 5
    A nostril, especially a large one.
  6. 6
    The people taken into an organization or establishment at a particular time.
  7. 7
    The process of screening a juvenile offender to decide upon release or referral.
  8. 8
    A tract of land enclosed.
  9. 9
    Any kind of cheat or imposition; the act of taking someone in.
  10. 10
    The part of language input that is actually processed by a learner.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. the intake of air
  2. In 2010 almost 120,000 people died prematurely and 108 million life years were lost—because of inadequate vitamin A intake.

Etymology

From English dialectal (Northern England/Scotland), deverbal of take in, equivalent to in- + take. More at in-, take.

This word in other languages

ingesta(Español)prise(Français)tomada(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • inatke
  • inntake
  • intaek
  • intakke
  • intkae
  • inttake
  • itnake
  • nitake

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

inatke2inntake1intaek2intakke1intkae2inttake1itnake2nitake2
Edit distance from "intake"

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 "intake"?
"intake" is spelled I-N-T-A-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪnteɪk/.
What does "intake" mean?
As a noun, "intake" means: The place where water, air or other fluid is taken into a pipe or conduit; opposed to outlet.
What words are commonly confused with "intake"?
"intake" is commonly confused with "INTHE", "invade", "invoke". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "intake"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "intake" is /ˈɪnteɪk/. 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 "intake"?
From English dialectal (Northern England/Scotland), deverbal of take in, equivalent to in- + take. More at in-, take. 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 "intake", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

intact#7,351hazard#7,348Lauren#7,357Martha#7,360

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

needle8 variantsrefugee8 variantsclaire8 variantsBryan8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list