intimacy

/ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si/

//ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si// noun

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

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

The verdict

“intimacy” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #12,259. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#12,259
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Feeling or atmosphere of closeness and openness towards someone else, often but not necessarily involving sexuality.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intimacy · intimacy · English

intimacy · rank #12,259 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #12,259
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH incidence

Nearest frequency peer: incidence (-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 “intimacy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “intimacy” 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).

intimacy vs intimate
75% similar

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

Key facts for intimacy
PropertyValue
Headwordintimacy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si/
Letters8
Frequency rank#12,259
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “intimacy”

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).intimacylands 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 “incidence” (#12,258), “ICC” (#12,257), “kat” (#12,262). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intimacy” is #12,259. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around intimacy (IPA /ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #12,259 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for intimacy, with forms such as "initmacy", "inntimacy", and "intiamcy". 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, "intimate", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From intimate + -cy. The correct English form is intimacy, spelled I-N-T-I-M-A-C-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Feeling or atmosphere of closeness and openness towards someone else, often but not necessarily involving sexuality.
  2. 2
    Intimate relationship.
  3. 3
    Intimate detail, (item of) intimate information.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. To adulterous lust the most sacred duties are sacrificed, because, before marriage, men, by a promiscuous intimacy with women, learned to consider love as a selfish gratification—learned to separate it not only from esteem, but from the affection merely built on habit, which mixes a little humanity with it.
  2. 1879, Robert Louis Stevenson, “Truth of Intercourse” in Essays, English and American, The Harvard Classics, Volume 28, edited by Charles W. Eliot, New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1910, p. 287, The habitual liar may be a very honest fellow, and live truly with his wife and friends; while another man who never told a formal falsehood in his life may yet be hi…

Etymology

From intimate + -cy.

Antonyms

solitude

This word in other languages

intimidad(Español)intimité(Français)Intimität(Deutsch)intimidade(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • initmacy
  • inntimacy
  • intiamcy
  • intimaccy
  • intimacyy
  • intimayc
  • intimcay
  • intimmacy
  • intmiacy
  • inttimacy
  • itnimacy
  • nitimacy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

initmacy2inntimacy1intiamcy2intimaccy1intimacyy1intimayc2intimcay2intimmacy1
Edit distance from "intimacy"

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 "intimacy"?
"intimacy" is spelled I-N-T-I-M-A-C-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si/.
What does "intimacy" mean?
As a noun, "intimacy" means: Feeling or atmosphere of closeness and openness towards someone else, often but not necessarily involving sexuality.
What words are commonly confused with "intimacy"?
"intimacy" is commonly confused with "intimate". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "intimacy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "intimacy" is /ˈɪn.tɪ.mə.si/. 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 "intimacy"?
From intimate + -cy. 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 "intimacy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Hartford#12,253handmade#12,252Geoffrey#12,249flirting#12,244

Similar misspelling depth

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

mutation12 variantsEdmonton12 variantsnoticing12 variantsdeserted12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list