mark

/mɑːk/

//mɑːk// noun

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

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

The verdict

“mark” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #949 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#949
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Boundary, land within a boundary.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

mark vs Mr
25% similar
mark vs MK
0% similar
mark vs may
50% similar

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

Key facts for mark
PropertyValue
Headwordmark
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/mɑːk/
Letters4
Frequency rank#949
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mark” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for mark is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /mɑːk/. Corpus data places it at rank #949 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 33 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for mark, with forms such as "amrk", "makr", and "markk". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Mr", "MK", "may", 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 mark, merk, merke, from Old English mearc (“mark, sign, line of division; standard; boundary, limit, term, border; defined area, district, province”), from Proto-West Germanic *marku, from Proto-Germanic *markō (“boundary; boundary marke… The correct English form is mark, spelled M-A-R-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    Boundary, land within a boundary.
  2. 2
    Boundary, land within a boundary.
  3. 3
    Boundary, land within a boundary.
  4. 4
    Boundary, land within a boundary.
  5. 5
    Boundary, land within a boundary.
  6. 6
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  7. 7
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  8. 8
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  9. 9
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  10. 10
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  11. 11
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  12. 12
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  13. 13
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  14. 14
    Characteristic, sign, visible impression.
  15. 15
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  16. 16
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  17. 17
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  18. 18
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  19. 19
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  20. 20
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  21. 21
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  22. 22
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  23. 23
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  24. 24
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  25. 25
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  26. 26
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  27. 27
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  28. 28
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  29. 29
    Indicator of position, objective etc.
  30. 30
    Attention.
  31. 31
    Attention.
  32. 32
    Attention.
  33. 33
    Attention.

Etymology

From Middle English mark, merk, merke, from Old English mearc (“mark, sign, line of division; standard; boundary, limit, term, border; defined area, district, province”), from Proto-West Germanic *marku, from Proto-Germanic *markō (“boundary; boundary marker”), from Proto-Indo-European *mórǵs (“edge, boundary, border”). Compare march. Cognates * Dutch mark, merk (“mark, brand”) * German Mark (“mark; borderland”), Marke (“mark, brand”) * Swedish mark (“mark, land, territory”) * Icelandic mark (“mark, sign”) * Latin margō (“edge, margin”) * Persian مرز (marz, “limit, boundary”) * Sanskrit मर्या (maryā, “limit, mark, boundary”), मार्ग (mārga, “mark, section”).

Synonyms

MkMk.heedobservanceattention

This word in other languages

marca(Español)marque(Français)Zeichen(Deutsch)marco(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: amrk,makr,markk,marrk,mmark,mrak

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

amrk2makr2markk1marrk1mmark1mrak2
Edit distance from "mark"

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 "mark"?
"mark" is spelled M-A-R-K. The IPA pronunciation is /mɑːk/.
What does "mark" mean?
As a noun, "mark" means: Boundary, land within a boundary.
What words are commonly confused with "mark"?
"mark" is commonly confused with "Mr", "MK", "may". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "mark"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mark" is /mɑːk/. 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 "mark"?
From Middle English mark, merk, merke, from Old English mearc (“mark, sign, line of division; standard; boundary, limit, term, border; defined area, district, province”), from Proto-West Germanic *marku, from Proto-Germanic *markō (“boundary; boun... 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.

Using “mark”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is M-A-R-K - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /mɑːk/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Mr” - see the side-by-side comparison. mark vs Mr
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list