itching

/ˈɪt͡ʃɪŋ/

//ˈɪt͡ʃɪŋ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“itching” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,871. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,871
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of itch

Corpus desk

Index EN-itching · itching · English

itching · rank #17,871 · 11 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,871
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH IPO

Nearest frequency peer: IPO (-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 “itching”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “itching” 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).

itching vs icing
71% similar
itching vs inching
86% similar

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

Key facts for itching
PropertyValue
Headworditching
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈɪt͡ʃɪŋ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#17,871
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “itching”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “IPO” (#17,870), “Jai” (#17,872), “inward” (#17,869). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “itching” is #17,871. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around itching (IPA /ˈɪt͡ʃɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #17,871 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of itch".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for itching, with forms such as "icthing", "itcching", and "itchhing". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "icing", "inching", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English ecchinge, ȝitchinge, ʒicchinde, ʒichande (also unassibilated as yckyng), from Old English ġiċċende (“itching”), from Proto-West Germanic *jukkjandi, present participle of *jukkjan (“to itch”), equivalent to itch + -ing. The correct English form is itching, spelled I-T-C-H-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of itch

Etymology

From Middle English ecchinge, ȝitchinge, ʒicchinde, ʒichande (also unassibilated as yckyng), from Old English ġiċċende (“itching”), from Proto-West Germanic *jukkjandi, present participle of *jukkjan (“to itch”), equivalent to itch + -ing.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • icthing
  • itcching
  • itchhing
  • itchign
  • itchingg
  • itchinng
  • itchnig
  • itcihng
  • ithcing
  • ittching
  • tiching

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

icthing2itcching1itchhing1itchign2itchingg1itchinng1itchnig2itcihng2
Edit distance from "itching"

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 "itching"?
"itching" is spelled I-T-C-H-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪt͡ʃɪŋ/.
What does "itching" mean?
As a verb, "itching" means: present participle and gerund of itch
What words are commonly confused with "itching"?
"itching" is commonly confused with "icing", "inching". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "itching"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "itching" is /ˈɪt͡ʃɪŋ/. 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 "itching"?
From Middle English ecchinge, ȝitchinge, ʒicchinde, ʒichande (also unassibilated as yckyng), from Old English ġiċċende (“itching”), from Proto-West Germanic *jukkjandi, present participle of *jukkjan (“to itch”), equivalent to itch + -ing. 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 "itching", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

hauling#17,854Hanover#17,851gearing#17,849eyebrow#17,839

Similar misspelling depth

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

hallmark11 variantsMotorola11 variantsnonstop11 variantsdopamine11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list