pacing

/ˈpeɪsɪŋ/

//ˈpeɪsɪŋ// verb

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

The verdict

“pacing” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #18,386 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#18,386
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - present participle and gerund of pace

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

pacing vs pain
67% similar
pacing vs ping
67% similar
pacing vs pang
67% similar

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

Key facts for pacing
PropertyValue
Headwordpacing
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈpeɪsɪŋ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#18,386
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pacing” 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). pacing 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 pacing is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈpeɪsɪŋ/. Corpus data places it at rank #18,386 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "present participle and gerund of pace".

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for pacing, with forms such as "apcing", "paccing", and "pacign". 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, "pain", "ping", "pang", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct English form is pacing, spelled P-A-C-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of pace

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: apcing,paccing,pacign,pacingg,pacinng,pacnig,paicng,pcaing,ppacing

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

apcing2paccing1pacign2pacingg1pacinng1pacnig2paicng2pcaing2
Edit distance from "pacing"

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 "pacing"?
"pacing" is spelled P-A-C-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpeɪsɪŋ/.
What does "pacing" mean?
As a verb, "pacing" means: present participle and gerund of pace
What words are commonly confused with "pacing"?
"pacing" is commonly confused with "pain", "ping", "pang". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pacing"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pacing" is /ˈpeɪsɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "pacing" come from?
"pacing" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 “pacing”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is P-A-C-I-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈpeɪsɪŋ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “pain” - see the side-by-side comparison. pacing vs pain
  • 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