paternity

/pəˈtɜːnɪti/

//pəˈtɜːnɪti// noun

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

"paternity" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“paternity” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #21,310. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#21,310
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Fatherhood, the state or quality of being a father.

Corpus desk

Index EN-paternity · paternity · English

paternity · rank #21,310 · 14 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #21,310
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH patriarchal

Nearest frequency peer: patriarchal (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “paternity”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “paternity” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for paternity
PropertyValue
Headwordpaternity
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pəˈtɜːnɪti/
Letters9
Frequency rank#21,310
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “paternity”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “patriarchal” (#21,311), “Paralympic” (#21,308), “peeling” (#21,313). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “paternity” is #21,310. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around paternity (IPA /pəˈtɜːnɪti/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #21,310 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for paternity, with forms such as "apternity", "paetrnity", and "patenrity". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French paternité, from Old French, from Latin paternitās (“paternity”), from paternus (“of or pertaining to a father, paternal”) + -itās, from pater (“father”). The correct English form is paternity, spelled P-A-T-E-R-N-I-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Fatherhood, the state or quality of being a father.
  2. 2
    Parental descent from a father.
  3. 3
    Legal acknowledgement of a man's fatherhood of a child.
  4. 4
    Authorship.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how paternity appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The author asserted her right to paternity on the book's copyright page.

Etymology

From Middle French paternité, from Old French, from Latin paternitās (“paternity”), from paternus (“of or pertaining to a father, paternal”) + -itās, from pater (“father”).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • apternity
  • paetrnity
  • patenrity
  • paterinty
  • paternitty
  • paternityy
  • paterniyt
  • paternnity
  • paterntiy
  • paterrnity
  • patrenity
  • patternity
  • ppaternity
  • ptaernity

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

apternity2paetrnity2patenrity2paterinty2paternitty1paternityy1paterniyt2paternnity1
Edit distance from "paternity"

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 "paternity"?
"paternity" is spelled P-A-T-E-R-N-I-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /pəˈtɜːnɪti/.
What does "paternity" mean?
As a noun, "paternity" means: Fatherhood, the state or quality of being a father.
What are common misspellings of "paternity"?
Common misspellings include "apternity", "paetrnity", "patenrity", "paterinty", "paternitty". The correct spelling is "paternity".
How do you pronounce "paternity"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "paternity" is /pəˈtɜːnɪti/. 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 "paternity"?
From Middle French paternité, from Old French, from Latin paternitās (“paternity”), from paternus (“of or pertaining to a father, paternal”) + -itās, from pater (“father”). 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "paternity", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

plutonium#21,318nocturnal#21,299psychosis#21,321nevermind#21,295

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

rectangle14 variantsmeticulous14 variantstenderness14 variantsthumbnail14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list