precocious

/pɹəˈkəʊʃəs/

//pɹəˈkəʊʃəs// adj

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

"precocious" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“precocious” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #34,643 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#34,643
frequency rank, English
10
letters
14
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Characterized by exceptionally early development or maturity.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

precocious vs precious
80% similar
precocious vs precarious
80% similar

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

Key facts for precocious
PropertyValue
Headwordprecocious
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/pɹəˈkəʊʃəs/
Letters10
Frequency rank#34,643
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “precocious” 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). precocious 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 precocious is 10 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pɹəˈkəʊʃəs/. Corpus data places it at rank #34,643 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for precocious, with forms such as "percocious", "pprecocious", and "prceocious". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "precious", "precarious", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin praecox (“premature, precocious, ripe before time, early ripe”), from praecoquō (“to ripen beforehand, ripen fully, also boil beforehand”), from prae (“before”) + coquō (“to cook, boil, ripen”). Doublet of apricot. The correct English form is precocious, spelled P-R-E-C-O-C-I-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Characterized by exceptionally early development or maturity.
  2. 2
    Exhibiting advanced skills and aptitudes at an abnormally early age.

Etymology

From Latin praecox (“premature, precocious, ripe before time, early ripe”), from praecoquō (“to ripen beforehand, ripen fully, also boil beforehand”), from prae (“before”) + coquō (“to cook, boil, ripen”). Doublet of apricot.

This word in other languages

précoce(Français)frühreif(Deutsch)precoce(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: percocious,pprecocious,prceocious,preccocious,preccoious,precoccious,precociosu,precociouss,precociuos,precocoius,precoicous,preoccious,prrecocious,rpecocious

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

percocious2pprecocious1prceocious2preccocious1preccoious2precoccious1precociosu2precociouss1
Edit distance from "precocious"

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 "precocious"?
"precocious" is spelled P-R-E-C-O-C-I-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /pɹəˈkəʊʃəs/.
What does "precocious" mean?
As an adjective, "precocious" means: Characterized by exceptionally early development or maturity.
What words are commonly confused with "precocious"?
"precocious" is commonly confused with "precious", "precarious". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "precocious"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "precocious" is /pɹəˈkəʊʃəs/. 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 "precocious"?
From Latin praecox (“premature, precocious, ripe before time, early ripe”), from praecoquō (“to ripen beforehand, ripen fully, also boil beforehand”), from prae (“before”) + coquō (“to cook, boil, ripen”). Doublet of apricot. 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 “precocious”

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

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