prognosis

/pɹɒɡˈnəʊsɪs/

//pɹɒɡˈnəʊsɪs// noun

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

The verdict

“prognosis” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,929. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,929
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A forecast of the future course or outcome of a situation based on what is presently known; a prediction.

Corpus desk

Index EN-prognosis · prognosis · English

prognosis · rank #18,929 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #18,929
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pristine

Nearest frequency peer: pristine (-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 “prognosis”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “prognosis” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

prognosis vs prognostic
80% similar

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

Key facts for prognosis
PropertyValue
Headwordprognosis
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pɹɒɡˈnəʊsɪs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#18,929
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “prognosis”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).prognosislands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “pristine” (#18,928), “propeller” (#18,930), “preferring” (#18,926). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “prognosis” is #18,929. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around prognosis (IPA /pɹɒɡˈnəʊsɪs/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #18,929 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for prognosis, with forms such as "porgnosis", "pprognosis", and "prgonosis". 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. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "prognostic", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Late Latin prognōsis (“forecast, prediction; forecast of the course and outcome of a disease”), itself borrowed from Ancient Greek πρόγνωσις (prógnōsis, “forecast of the course and outcome of a disease; (Koine) foreknowledge, perceivi… The correct English form is prognosis, spelled P-R-O-G-N-O-S-I-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    A forecast of the future course or outcome of a situation based on what is presently known; a prediction.
  2. 2
    A forecast of the future course or outcome of a disease or disorder based on current medical knowledge.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I may say here that it is one of the evidences of original character, that it is apt to baffle all prognosis from a mere observer's standpoint.
  2. Despite the positive, constructive aspects of the Beeching Report, the gloomy prognoses on B.R. which issued from so many commentators prior to its publication have left a widespread impression that the railway is an outdated concept.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Late Latin prognōsis (“forecast, prediction; forecast of the course and outcome of a disease”), itself borrowed from Ancient Greek πρόγνωσις (prógnōsis, “forecast of the course and outcome of a disease; (Koine) foreknowledge, perceiving beforehand, prediction”), from προ- (pro-, prefix meaning ‘before; beforehand’) + γνῶσῐς (gnôsĭs, “inquiry, investigation; knowledge”). The plural prognoses is a learned borrowing from Late Latin prognōsēs. Cognates * Middle French prognosie (“forecast, prediction”) (modern French prognosie (obsolete), prognose (“forecast of the course and outcome of a disease”)) * Sanskrit प्रज्ञा (prajñā, “intelligence, wisdom; judgment; knowledge”)

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • porgnosis
  • pprognosis
  • prgonosis
  • proggnosis
  • prognnosis
  • prognoiss
  • prognosiss
  • prognossi
  • prognossis
  • prognsois
  • progonsis
  • prongosis
  • prrognosis
  • rpognosis

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

porgnosis2pprognosis1prgonosis2proggnosis1prognnosis1prognoiss2prognosiss1prognossi2
Edit distance from "prognosis"

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 "prognosis"?
"prognosis" is spelled P-R-O-G-N-O-S-I-S. The IPA pronunciation is /pɹɒɡˈnəʊsɪs/.
What does "prognosis" mean?
As a noun, "prognosis" means: A forecast of the future course or outcome of a situation based on what is presently known; a prediction.
What words are commonly confused with "prognosis"?
"prognosis" is commonly confused with "prognostic". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "prognosis"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "prognosis" is /pɹɒɡˈnəʊsɪs/. 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 "prognosis"?
Learned borrowing from Late Latin prognōsis (“forecast, prediction; forecast of the course and outcome of a disease”), itself borrowed from Ancient Greek πρόγνωσις (prógnōsis, “forecast of the course and outcome of a disease; (Koine) foreknowledge... 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 "prognosis", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Similar misspelling depth

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list