practice

/ˈpɹæktɪs/

//ˈpɹæktɪs// noun

"practice" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“practice” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #931 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#931
frequency rank, English
8
letters
12
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Repetition of an activity to improve a skill.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

practice vs practise
88% similar
practice vs prentice
75% similar
practice vs practices
89% similar

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

Key facts for practice
PropertyValue
Headwordpractice
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpɹæktɪs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#931
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “practice” 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). practice 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 practice is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈpɹæktɪs/. Corpus data places it at rank #931 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for practice, with forms such as "parctice", "ppractice", and "pracctice". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "practise", "prentice", "practices", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: The noun is from Middle English practice, practique, practyse, from the verb; also compare Medieval Latin prāctica. The verb is from Middle English practice, practise, practize, practyse, from Middle French pratiser, practiser, alteration of practiquer, fro… The correct English form is practice, spelled P-R-A-C-T-I-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Repetition of an activity to improve a skill.
  2. 2
    An organized event for the purpose of performing such repetition.
  3. 3
    The ongoing pursuit of a craft or profession, particularly in medicine or the fine arts.
  4. 4
    A place where a professional service is provided, such as a general practice.
  5. 5
    The observance of religious duties that a church requires of its members.
  6. 6
    A customary action, habit, or behaviour; a manner or routine.
  7. 7
    Actual operation or experiment, in contrast to theory.
  8. 8
    The form, manner, and order of conducting and carrying on suits and prosecutions through their various stages, according to the principles of law and the rules laid down by the courts.
  9. 9
    Skilful or artful management; dexterity in contrivance or the use of means; stratagem; artifice.
  10. 10
    An easy and concise method of applying the rules of arithmetic to questions which occur in trade and business.

Etymology

The noun is from Middle English practice, practique, practyse, from the verb; also compare Medieval Latin prāctica. The verb is from Middle English practice, practise, practize, practyse, from Middle French pratiser, practiser, alteration of practiquer, from Medieval Latin prācticāre, from Late Latin prācticus, from Ancient Greek πρακτικός (praktikós). The spelling practice is attested once in Middle English for both the noun and the verb. The noun began to be assimilated in spelling to nouns in -ice; practise (noun) is now obsolete.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: parctice,ppractice,pracctice,pracitce,practcie,practicce,practiec,practtice,pratcice,prcatice,prractice,rpactice

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of practice - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

parctice2ppractice1pracctice1pracitce2practcie2practicce1practiec2practtice1
Edit distance from "practice"

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 "practice"?
"practice" is spelled P-R-A-C-T-I-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɹæktɪs/.
What does "practice" mean?
As a noun, "practice" means: Repetition of an activity to improve a skill.
What words are commonly confused with "practice"?
"practice" is commonly confused with "practise", "prentice", "practices". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "practice"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "practice" is /ˈpɹæktɪs/. 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 "practice"?
The noun is from Middle English practice, practique, practyse, from the verb; also compare Medieval Latin prāctica. The verb is from Middle English practice, practise, practize, practyse, from Middle French pratiser, practiser, alteration of pract... 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 “practice”

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

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