join

/ˈd͡ʒɔɪn/

//ˈd͡ʒɔɪn// verb

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

"join" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“join” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #1,085) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#1,085
frequency rank, English
796
“J” headwords
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To connect or combine into one; to put together.

Corpus desk

Index EN-join · join · English

join · rank #1,085 · 4 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,085
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-LOW 4 variants
  • BOOK-MID 796
  • PHOTO-FINISH j

Nearest frequency peer: j (-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 “join”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “join” 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).

join vs joy
50% similar
join vs Jon
50% similar
join vs jun
50% similar

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

Key facts for join
PropertyValue
Headwordjoin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈd͡ʒɔɪn/
Letters4
Frequency rank#1,085
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “join” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).joinlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “j” (#1,084), “kept” (#1,086), “interesting” (#1,083). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for join is neighbouring look-alikes ("joy", "Jon", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɔɪn/. Frequency #1,085 among 796 “J” headwords. 9 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for join, with forms such as "jion", "jjoin", and "joinn". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "joy", "Jon", "jun", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English joinen, joynen, joignen, from Old French joindre, juindre, jungre, from Latin iungō (“join, yoke”, verb), from Proto-Indo-European *yewg- (“to join, unite”). Cognate with Old English iucian, iugian, ġeocian, ġyċċan (“to join; yoke”). Mor… The correct English form is join, spelled J-O-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To connect or combine into one; to put together.
  2. 2
    To come together; to meet.
  3. 3
    To enter into association or alliance, to unite in a common purpose.
  4. 4
    To come into the company of.
  5. 5
    To become a member of.
  6. 6
    To produce an intersection of data in two or more database tables.
  7. 7
    To unite in marriage.
  8. 8
    To enjoin upon; to command.
  9. 9
    To accept, or engage in, as a contest.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The plumber joined the two ends of the broken pipe.
  2. We joined our efforts to get an even better result.

Etymology

From Middle English joinen, joynen, joignen, from Old French joindre, juindre, jungre, from Latin iungō (“join, yoke”, verb), from Proto-Indo-European *yewg- (“to join, unite”). Cognate with Old English iucian, iugian, ġeocian, ġyċċan (“to join; yoke”). More at yoke.

Synonyms

bewedconnectfayuniteaccoupleaffixassembleassociateattachbindclaspclinchcombineconglomerateconglutinateconjoinconstructcoupleentwinefixgrafthitchhookinosculateinterlinkjoinjointknitknotlinkmarrypiece togetherpiecenpinionput togethersplicewedyoke

Antonyms

detachdisconnectdisjoindivideunfasten

This word in other languages

juntar(Español)joindre(Français)verknüpfen(Deutsch)juntar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • jion
  • jjoin
  • joinn
  • ojin

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

jion2jjoin1joinn1ojin2
Edit distance from "join"

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 "join"?
"join" is spelled J-O-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈd͡ʒɔɪn/.
What does "join" mean?
As a verb, "join" means: To connect or combine into one; to put together.
What words are commonly confused with "join"?
"join" is commonly confused with "joy", "Jon", "jun". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "join"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "join" is /ˈd͡ʒɔɪn/. 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 "join"?
From Middle English joinen, joynen, joignen, from Old French joindre, juindre, jungre, from Latin iungō (“join, yoke”, verb), from Proto-Indo-European *yewg- (“to join, unite”). Cognate with Old English iucian, iugian, ġeocian, ġyċċan (“to join; y... 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 "join", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

kept#1,086sort#1,098drop#1,103fair#1,104

What to do next

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

  • "join" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "joy". View pair
  • 4 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #1,085 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "J" letter cohort. J–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