quince

/kwɪns/

//kwɪns// noun

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

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

The verdict

“quince” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #34,657 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#34,657
frequency rank, English
6
letters
8
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The pear-shaped fruit of a small tree of the rose family, Cydonia oblonga.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

quince vs quite
67% similar
quince vs Quinn
50% similar
quince vs quint
67% similar

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

Key facts for quince
PropertyValue
Headwordquince
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kwɪns/
Letters6
Frequency rank#34,657
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “quince” 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). quince 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 quince is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /kwɪns/. Corpus data places it at rank #34,657 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for quince, with forms such as "qiunce", "qquince", and "quicne". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "quite", "Quinn", "quint", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English quynce, coince, a variant of coins, coin (“quince”), from Old French cooing (modern coing), from Late Latin cotōneum, from Latin mālum cotōneum, a variant of mālum Cydonium (“Cydonian apple”), translating Ancient Greek μηλοκυδώνιον (mēlo… The correct English form is quince, spelled Q-U-I-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The pear-shaped fruit of a small tree of the rose family, Cydonia oblonga.
  2. 2
    The deciduous tree bearing such fruit, native to Asia.
  3. 3
    A soft yellow colour, like that of a quince.

Etymology

From Middle English quynce, coince, a variant of coins, coin (“quince”), from Old French cooing (modern coing), from Late Latin cotōneum, from Latin mālum cotōneum, a variant of mālum Cydonium (“Cydonian apple”), translating Ancient Greek μηλοκυδώνιον (mēlokudṓnion).

This word in other languages

membrillo(Español)coing(Français)Quitte(Deutsch)marmelo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: qiunce,qquince,quicne,quincce,quinec,quinnce,qunice,uqince

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of quince - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

qiunce2qquince1quicne2quincce1quinec2quinnce1qunice2uqince2
Edit distance from "quince"

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 "quince"?
"quince" is spelled Q-U-I-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kwɪns/.
What does "quince" mean?
As a noun, "quince" means: The pear-shaped fruit of a small tree of the rose family, Cydonia oblonga.
What words are commonly confused with "quince"?
"quince" is commonly confused with "quite", "Quinn", "quint". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "quince"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quince" is /kwɪns/. 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 "quince"?
From Middle English quynce, coince, a variant of coins, coin (“quince”), from Old French cooing (modern coing), from Late Latin cotōneum, from Latin mālum cotōneum, a variant of mālum Cydonium (“Cydonian apple”), translating Ancient Greek μηλοκυδώ... 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 “quince”

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

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