# oxen

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈɑksən/ · frequency rank #32,957

## Definitions
1. plural of ox

## Etymology
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *uksḗn
Proto-Germanic *uhsô
Proto-West Germanic *ohsō
Old English oxa
Old English oxan
Middle English oxen
English oxen
From Middle English oxen, from Old English oxan, from Proto-West Germanic *ohsan, from Proto-Germanic *uhsniz, nominative and accusative plural of *uhsô (“ox”), equivalent to ox + -en (plural ending).

## Easily confused with
- **Oxon** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/oxen-vs-oxon)
- **Oxley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/oxen-vs-oxley)
- **oxygen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/oxen-vs-oxygen)
- **on** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/on-vs-oxen)
- **ox** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ox-vs-oxen)
- **OE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/oe-vs-oxen)
- **one** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/one-vs-oxen)
- **own** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/own-vs-oxen)
- **owe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/owe-vs-oxen)
- **ore** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ore-vs-oxen)
- **ole** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ole-vs-oxen)
- **ode** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ode-vs-oxen)
- **OEM** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/oem-vs-oxen)
- **OBE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/obe-vs-oxen)
- **over** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/over-vs-oxen)
- **open** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/open-vs-oxen)
- **ones** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/ones-vs-oxen)
- **oven** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/oven-vs-oxen)
- **Owen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/owen-vs-oxen)
- **owed** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/owed-vs-oxen)

## Common misspellings (5)
`oexn`, `oxenn`, `oxne`, `oxxen`, `xoen`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/oxen