obtaining
/əbˈteɪnɪŋ/
"obtaining" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“obtaining” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,949. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #7,949
- frequency rank, English
- 15,494
- “O” headwords
- 13
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - present participle and gerund of obtain
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | obtaining |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /əbˈteɪnɪŋ/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #7,949 |
| Misspellings tracked | 13 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “obtaining” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 13 spelling variants around obtaining (IPA /əbˈteɪnɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #7,949 among 15,494 “O” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of obtain".
Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for obtaining, with forms such as "botaining", "obatining", and "obbtaining". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct English form is obtaining, spelled O-B-T-A-I-N-I-N-G.
Definition
- 1present participle and gerund of obtain
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: botaining,obatining,obbtaining,obtaiinng,obtainign,obtainingg,obtaininng,obtainnig,obtainning,obtaniing,obtianing,obttaining,otbaining
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of obtaining - 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.
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 “obtaining”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is O-B-T-A-I-N-I-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /əbˈteɪnɪŋ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Same frequency band
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.