quarantine
/ˈkwɔɹ.ən.tin/
"quarantine" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“quarantine” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #12,306 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #12,306
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
- 14
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A period of 40 days, particularly
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | quarantine |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈkwɔɹ.ən.tin/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #12,306 |
| Misspellings tracked | 14 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “quarantine” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for quarantine is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkwɔɹ.ən.tin/. Corpus data places it at rank #12,306 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 10 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 quarantine, with forms such as "qaurantine", "qquarantine", and "quaarntine". 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 is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Medieval Latin quarentena and quarentīna (“40-day period, Lent”) via Middle English quarentine, Norman quarenteine, French quarenteine, and Italian quarantina, via proposed Late Latin *quaranta + -ēna (forming distributive adjectives), from Latin quadr… The correct English form is quarantine, spelled Q-U-A-R-A-N-T-I-N-E.
Definition
- 1A period of 40 days, particularly
- 2A period of 40 days, particularly
- 3A period of 40 days, particularly
- 4A period of 40 days, particularly
- 5A period, instance, or state of isolation from the general public or from native livestock and flora enacted to prevent the spread of any contagious disease.
- 6A similar period, instance, or state of rigidly enforced or self-enforced detention or isolation.
- 7A place where such isolation is enforced, a lazaret.
- 8A blockade of trade, suspension of diplomatic relations, or other action whereby one country seeks to isolate another.
- 9An isolation of one program, drive, computer, etc. from the rest of a computer network to limit the damage from a bug, computer virus, etc.
- 10The program, drive, computer, etc. thus isolated.
Etymology
From Medieval Latin quarentena and quarentīna (“40-day period, Lent”) via Middle English quarentine, Norman quarenteine, French quarenteine, and Italian quarantina, via proposed Late Latin *quaranta + -ēna (forming distributive adjectives), from Latin quadrāgintā (“four tens, 40”). In reference to French politics, calque of French quarantaine after edicts of Louis IX. In reference to a severance of political relations, popularized by the Roosevelt administration's 1937 approach to the Axis powers and the later Kennedy administration's 1962 approach to Cuba during the missile crisis.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: qaurantine,qquarantine,quaarntine,quaranitne,quaranntine,quarantien,quarantinne,quarantnie,quaranttine,quaratnine,quarnatine,quarrantine,quraantine,uqarantine
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of quarantine - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "quarantine"?
What does "quarantine" mean?
What are common misspellings of "quarantine"?
How do you pronounce "quarantine"?
What is the origin of the word "quarantine"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “quarantine”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is Q-U-A-R-A-N-T-I-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈkwɔɹ.ən.tin/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.