quaint

/kweɪnt/

//kweɪnt// adj

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

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

The verdict

“quaint” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #20,468. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,468
frequency rank, English
288
“Q” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of a person: cunning, crafty.

Corpus desk

Index EN-quaint · quaint · English

quaint · rank #20,468 · 8 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #20,468
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 288
  • PHOTO-FINISH proclaim

Nearest frequency peer: proclaim (-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 “quaint”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “quaint” 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).

quaint vs quit
67% similar
quaint vs quiet
67% similar
quaint vs Quinn
50% similar

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

Key facts for quaint
PropertyValue
Headwordquaint
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/kweɪnt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#20,468
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “quaint”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).quaintlands 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 “proclaim” (#20,467), “privatization” (#20,466), “raccoon” (#20,470). Among 288 “Q” headwords, “quaint” is #20,468. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around quaint (IPA /kweɪnt/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #20,468 among 288 “Q” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for quaint, with forms such as "qauint", "qquaint", and "quainnt". 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 8 confusable-pair relationships, "quit", "quiet", "Quinn", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English queynte, quoynte, from Anglo-Norman cointe, queinte and Old French cointe (“pretty, clever, knowing”), from Latin cognitus, past participle of cognōscō (“I know”). The correct English form is quaint, spelled Q-U-A-I-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of a person: cunning, crafty.
  2. 2
    Cleverly made; artfully contrived.
  3. 3
    Strange or odd; unusual.
  4. 4
    Overly discriminating or needlessly meticulous; fastidious; prim.
  5. 5
    Pleasingly unusual; especially, having old-fashioned charm.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. But you, my Lord, were glad to be imploy'd, / To shew how queint an Orator you are.
  2. describe races and games, / Or tilting furniture, imblazon'd shields, / Impresses quaint, caparisons and steeds, / Bases and tinsel trappings […].

Etymology

From Middle English queynte, quoynte, from Anglo-Norman cointe, queinte and Old French cointe (“pretty, clever, knowing”), from Latin cognitus, past participle of cognōscō (“I know”).

This word in other languages

pintoresco(Español)pittoresque(Français)pittoresk(Deutsch)encanto(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • qauint
  • qquaint
  • quainnt
  • quaintt
  • quaitn
  • quanit
  • quiant
  • uqaint

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

qauint2qquaint1quainnt1quaintt1quaitn2quanit2quiant2uqaint2
Edit distance from "quaint"

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 "quaint"?
"quaint" is spelled Q-U-A-I-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /kweɪnt/.
What does "quaint" mean?
As an adjective, "quaint" means: Of a person: cunning, crafty.
What words are commonly confused with "quaint"?
"quaint" is commonly confused with "quit", "quiet", "Quinn". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "quaint"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quaint" is /kweɪnt/. 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 "quaint"?
From Middle English queynte, quoynte, from Anglo-Norman cointe, queinte and Old French cointe (“pretty, clever, knowing”), from Latin cognitus, past participle of cognōscō (“I know”). 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 "quaint", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

picket#20,458richly#20,479Oakley#20,448serene#20,490

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

raccoon8 variantsShrek8 variantssilica8 variantssnuck8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list