quintet

/kwɪnˈtɛt/

//kwɪnˈtɛt// noun

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

"quintet" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“quintet” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #35,037 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#35,037
frequency rank, English
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A composition (a type of chamber music) in five parts (typically each a singer or instrumentalist, sometimes several musicians)

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

quintet vs quite
71% similar
quintet vs Quinton
57% similar
quintet vs quitter
71% similar

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

Key facts for quintet
PropertyValue
Headwordquintet
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kwɪnˈtɛt/
Letters7
Frequency rank#35,037
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs10
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “quintet” 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). quintet 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 quintet is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /kwɪnˈtɛt/. Corpus data places it at rank #35,037 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 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for quintet, with forms such as "qiuntet", "qquintet", and "quinett". 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 10 confusable-pair relationships, "quite", "Quinton", "quitter", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French quintette, from Italian quintetto, diminutive of quinto (“fifth”), itself from Latin quintus, related to quīnque (“five”). The correct English form is quintet, spelled Q-U-I-N-T-E-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    A composition (a type of chamber music) in five parts (typically each a singer or instrumentalist, sometimes several musicians)
  2. 2
    A group of five musicians, fit to play such a piece of music together
  3. 3
    Any group of five members

Etymology

From French quintette, from Italian quintetto, diminutive of quinto (“fifth”), itself from Latin quintus, related to quīnque (“five”).

Synonyms

fivesomepentadpentupletquinityquintadquintetquintupletquintuplex

This word in other languages

quinteto(Español)quintette(Français)Quintett(Deutsch)quinteto(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: qiuntet,qquintet,quinett,quinntet,quintett,quintte,quinttet,quitnet,qunitet,uqintet

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

qiuntet2qquintet1quinett2quinntet1quintett1quintte2quinttet1quitnet2
Edit distance from "quintet"

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 "quintet"?
"quintet" is spelled Q-U-I-N-T-E-T. The IPA pronunciation is /kwɪnˈtɛt/.
What does "quintet" mean?
As a noun, "quintet" means: A composition (a type of chamber music) in five parts (typically each a singer or instrumentalist, sometimes several musicians)
What words are commonly confused with "quintet"?
"quintet" is commonly confused with "quite", "Quinton", "quitter". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "quintet"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quintet" is /kwɪnˈtɛt/. 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 "quintet"?
From French quintette, from Italian quintetto, diminutive of quinto (“fifth”), itself from Latin quintus, related to quīnque (“five”). 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 “quintet”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is Q-U-I-N-T-E-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /kwɪnˈtɛt/ (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. quintet 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