license
/ˈlaɪ.səns/
"license" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“license” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,902 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #2,902
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A legal document giving official permission to do something; a permit.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | license |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈlaɪ.səns/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #2,902 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “license” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for license is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈlaɪ.səns/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,902 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for license, with forms such as "ilcense", "lciense", and "liccense". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "licensed", "licensee", "licensure", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English licence, licens, lisence, lissens, licance, from Old French licence, from Latin licentia (“license”), from licens, present participle of licere (“to be allowed, be allowable”); compare linquere, Ancient Greek λείπω (leípō, “leave”). The correct English form is license, spelled L-I-C-E-N-S-E.
Definition
- 1A legal document giving official permission to do something; a permit.
- 2The legal terms under which a person is allowed to use a product, especially software.
- 3Freedom to deviate deliberately from normally applicable rules or practices (especially in behaviour or speech).
- 4Excessive freedom; lack of due restraint.
- 5Ellipsis of driver's license.
Etymology
From Middle English licence, licens, lisence, lissens, licance, from Old French licence, from Latin licentia (“license”), from licens, present participle of licere (“to be allowed, be allowable”); compare linquere, Ancient Greek λείπω (leípō, “leave”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ilcense,lciense,liccense,licenes,licennse,licensse,licesne,licnese,liecnse,llicense
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of license - 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.
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
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Using “license”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is L-I-C-E-N-S-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈlaɪ.səns/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “licensed” - see the side-by-side comparison. license vs licensed
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.