lance

/lɑːns/

//lɑːns// noun

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

"lance" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“lance” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,807. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,807
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle and a steel blade or head; a spear carried by horsemen.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lance · lance · English

lance · rank #7,807 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,807
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH junction

Nearest frequency peer: junction (-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 “lance”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “lance” 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).

lance vs line
60% similar
lance vs late
60% similar
lance vs land
60% similar

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

Key facts for lance
PropertyValue
Headwordlance
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/lɑːns/
Letters5
Frequency rank#7,807
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “lance”

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).lancelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “junction” (#7,806), “leap” (#7,808), “jun” (#7,805). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lance” is #7,807. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around lance (IPA /lɑːns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #7,807 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for lance, with forms such as "alnce", "lacne", and "lancce". 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, "line", "late", "land", 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 launce, from Old French lance, from Latin lancea. The correct English form is lance, spelled L-A-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle and a steel blade or head; a spear carried by horsemen.
  2. 2
    A wooden spear, sometimes hollow, used in jousting or tilting, designed to shatter on impact with the opposing knight’s armour.
  3. 3
    A spear or harpoon used by whalers and fishermen.
  4. 4
    A soldier armed with a lance; a lancer.
  5. 5
    An instrument which conveys the charge of a piece of ordnance and forces it home.
  6. 6
    A small iron rod which suspends the core of the mold in casting a shell.
  7. 7
    One of the small paper cases filled with combustible composition, which mark the outlines of a figure.
  8. 8
    A lancet.
  9. 9
    A piece in the game of shogi that can move directly forward any number of squares.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Thy brother’s blood the thirsty earth hath drunk, Broach’d with the steely point of Clifford’s lance[…]
  2. The head of the lance was commonly of the leaf form, and sometimes approached that of the lozenge; it was very seldom barbed, although this variety, together with the others, appears upon the Bayeux Tapestry.

Etymology

From Middle English launce, from Old French lance, from Latin lancea.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • alnce
  • lacne
  • lancce
  • lanec
  • lannce
  • lence
  • llance
  • lnace

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of lance - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

alnce2lacne2lancce1lanec2lannce1lence1llance1lnace2
Edit distance from "lance"

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 "lance"?
"lance" is spelled L-A-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /lɑːns/.
What does "lance" mean?
As a noun, "lance" means: A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle and a steel blade or head; a spear carried by horsemen.
What words are commonly confused with "lance"?
"lance" is commonly confused with "line", "late", "land". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "lance"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lance" is /lɑːns/. 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 "lance"?
From Middle English launce, from Old French lance, from Latin lancea. 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 "lance", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

locks#7,810lynch#7,812hobby#7,800grove#7,797

Similar misspelling depth

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

locate8 variantsmotive8 variantsgrind8 variantsfeared8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list