length

/lɛŋ(k)θ/

//lɛŋ(k)θ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“length” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,765. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,765
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The distance measured along the longest dimension of an object.

Corpus desk

Index EN-length · length · English

length · rank #1,765 · 10 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,765
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH leadership

Nearest frequency peer: leadership (-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 “length”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “length” 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).

length vs lent
67% similar
length vs lengthy
86% similar
length vs lengthen
75% similar

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

Key facts for length
PropertyValue
Headwordlength
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/lɛŋ(k)θ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#1,765
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “length”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).lengthlands 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 “leadership” (#1,764), “lucky” (#1,766), “labor” (#1,763). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “length” is #1,765. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around length (IPA /lɛŋ(k)θ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,765 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 11 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for length, with forms such as "elngth", "legnth", and "lenggth". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "lent", "lengthy", "lengthen", 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 lengthe, from Old English lengþ, lengþu, from Proto-West Germanic *langiþu, from Proto-Germanic *langiþō, equivalent to long + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with Scots lenth, lainth (“length”), Saterland Frisian Loangte (“length… The correct English form is length, spelled L-E-N-G-T-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    The distance measured along the longest dimension of an object.
  2. 2
    Duration.
  3. 3
    The length of a horse, used to indicate the distance between horses at the end of a race.
  4. 4
    Distance between the two ends of a line segment.
  5. 5
    The distance down the pitch that the ball bounces on its way to the batsman.
  6. 6
    Total extent.
  7. 7
    Part of something that is long; a physical piece of something.
  8. 8
    A penis.
  9. 9
    A unit of script length, comprising 42 lines.
  10. 10
    The number of cards held in a particular suit.
  11. 11
    The amount of time for which the taste of wine lingers on the palate after swallowing or spitting it out, measured in caudilies.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length.
  2. the length of a book

Etymology

From Middle English lengthe, from Old English lengþ, lengþu, from Proto-West Germanic *langiþu, from Proto-Germanic *langiþō, equivalent to long + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with Scots lenth, lainth (“length”), Saterland Frisian Loangte (“length”), West Frisian lingte, langte (“length”), Dutch lengte (“length”), German Low German Längde, Längd, Längte, Längt (“length”), Danish længde (“length”), Swedish längd (“length”), Icelandic lengd (“length”).

Synonyms

lengthlengthinesslongitudelongness

Antonyms

width

This word in other languages

largo(Español)longueur(Français)Länge(Deutsch)comprimento(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • elngth
  • legnth
  • lenggth
  • lenght
  • lengthh
  • lengtth
  • lenngth
  • lentgh
  • llength
  • lnegth

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

elngth2legnth2lenggth1lenght2lengthh1lengtth1lenngth1lentgh2
Edit distance from "length"

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 "length"?
"length" is spelled L-E-N-G-T-H. The IPA pronunciation is /lɛŋ(k)θ/.
What does "length" mean?
As a noun, "length" means: The distance measured along the longest dimension of an object.
What words are commonly confused with "length"?
"length" is commonly confused with "lent", "lengthy", "lengthen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "length"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "length" is /lɛŋ(k)θ/. 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 "length"?
From Middle English lengthe, from Old English lengþ, lengþu, from Proto-West Germanic *langiþu, from Proto-Germanic *langiþō, equivalent to long + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with Scots lenth, lainth (“length”), Saterland Frisian Loangt... 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 "length", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Israel#1,761garden#1,757skills#1,774bridge#1,746

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

neither10 variantsjournal10 variantspatient10 variantshousing10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list