questioning

/ˈkwɛs.t͡ʃə.nɪŋ/

//ˈkwɛs.t͡ʃə.nɪŋ// noun

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

"questioning" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“questioning” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,728. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,728
frequency rank, English
288
“Q” headwords
16
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The action of asking questions; a survey; an inquiry.

Corpus desk

Index EN-questioning · questioning · English

questioning · rank #6,728 · 16 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,728
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 288
  • PHOTO-FINISH recreation

Nearest frequency peer: recreation (+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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “questioning”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “questioning” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for questioning
PropertyValue
Headwordquestioning
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkwɛs.t͡ʃə.nɪŋ/
Letters11
Frequency rank#6,728
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “questioning” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).questioninglands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “recreation” (#6,729), “pt” (#6,726), “pricing” (#6,725). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around questioning (IPA /ˈkwɛs.t͡ʃə.nɪŋ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #6,728 among 288 “Q” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for questioning, with forms such as "qeustioning", "qquestioning", and "quesitoning". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From question + -ing (noun via Middle English questionyng). The correct English form is questioning, spelled Q-U-E-S-T-I-O-N-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    The action of asking questions; a survey; an inquiry.
  2. 2
    The act of challenging, wondering, and doubting.
  3. 3
    Interrogation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I didn’t know much about medical supplies, so I took the list Docc handed me without much questioning.
  2. The official Central News agency said a Nationalist patrol boat Dec. 28 captured six Communist spies disguised as fishermen as they approached within 1,000 yards of the Paichuan in a motorized fishing craft. They were taken to Matsu for questioning.

Etymology

From question + -ing (noun via Middle English questionyng).

This word in other languages

cuestionamiento(Español)Befragung(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • qeustioning
  • qquestioning
  • quesitoning
  • quesstioning
  • questinoing
  • questioinng
  • questionign
  • questioningg
  • questioninng
  • questionnig
  • questionning
  • questoining
  • questtioning
  • quetsioning
  • qusetioning
  • uqestioning

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

qeustioning2qquestioning1quesitoning2quesstioning1questinoing2questioinng2questionign2questioningg1
Edit distance from "questioning"

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 "questioning"?
"questioning" is spelled Q-U-E-S-T-I-O-N-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkwɛs.t͡ʃə.nɪŋ/.
What does "questioning" mean?
As a noun, "questioning" means: The action of asking questions; a survey; an inquiry.
What are common misspellings of "questioning"?
Common misspellings include "qeustioning", "qquestioning", "quesitoning", "quesstioning", "questinoing". The correct spelling is "questioning".
How do you pronounce "questioning"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "questioning" is /ˈkwɛs.t͡ʃə.nɪŋ/. 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 "questioning"?
From question + -ing (noun via Middle English questionyng). 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 "questioning", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

nonetheless#6,714magnificent#6,708emotionally#6,682dimensional#6,780

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

withdrawal16 variantsprofitable16 variantsorientation16 variantsaccordingly16 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "questioning". Here's where to go from here.

  • 16 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #6,728 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "Q" letter cohort. Q–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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