recklessness

noun

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

"recklessness" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“recklessness” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #38,127. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#38,127
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The state or quality of being reckless or heedless, of taking unnecessary risks.

Corpus desk

Index EN-recklessness · recklessness · English

recklessness · rank #38,127 · 16 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #38,127
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH reciprocate

Nearest frequency peer: reciprocate (-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 “recklessness”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “recklessness” 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).

recklessness vs restlessness
83% similar

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

Key facts for recklessness
PropertyValue
Headwordrecklessness
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters12
Frequency rank#38,127
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “recklessness”

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).recklessnesslands 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 “reciprocate” (#38,126), “remaking” (#38,129), “Rashad” (#38,123). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “recklessness” is #38,127. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around recklessness, anoun. Corpus frequency is #38,127 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The state or quality of being reckless or heedless, of taking unnecessary risks.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for recklessness, with forms such as "ercklessness", "rceklessness", and "reccklessness". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "restlessness", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English reklesnes, reklesnesse, rekelesnesse (also assibilated as rechelesnes, reccheleesnesse), from Old English rēcelēasnes (“recklessness, carelessness, negligence”), equivalent to reckless + -ness. The correct English form is recklessness, spelled R-E-C-K-L-E-S-S-N-E-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    The state or quality of being reckless or heedless, of taking unnecessary risks.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. His recklessness repeatedly put him in danger.
  2. At such times, how we marvel at our usual recklessness, and pause, as it were, shrinking from the busy and inevitable current which is hurrying us on to eternity!

Etymology

From Middle English reklesnes, reklesnesse, rekelesnesse (also assibilated as rechelesnes, reccheleesnesse), from Old English rēcelēasnes (“recklessness, carelessness, negligence”), equivalent to reckless + -ness.

This word in other languages

descuido(Español)Leichtsinnigkeit(Deutsch)descuido(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ercklessness
  • rceklessness
  • reccklessness
  • reckelssness
  • reckklessness
  • recklesness
  • recklesnsess
  • recklessenss
  • recklessnes
  • recklessnness
  • recklessnses
  • reckllessness
  • recklsesness
  • reclkessness
  • rekclessness
  • rrecklessness

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ercklessness2rceklessness2reccklessness1reckelssness2reckklessness1recklesness1recklesnsess2recklessenss2
Edit distance from "recklessness"

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 "recklessness"?
"recklessness" is spelled R-E-C-K-L-E-S-S-N-E-S-S.
What does "recklessness" mean?
As a noun, "recklessness" means: The state or quality of being reckless or heedless, of taking unnecessary risks.
What words are commonly confused with "recklessness"?
"recklessness" is commonly confused with "restlessness". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "recklessness"?
From Middle English reklesnes, reklesnesse, rekelesnesse (also assibilated as rechelesnes, reccheleesnesse), from Old English rēcelēasnes (“recklessness, carelessness, negligence”), equivalent to reckless + -ness. 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 "recklessness", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

principality#38,108stepdaughter#38,180agribusiness#38,268interstitial#37,985

Similar misspelling depth

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

reciprocate16 variantsprecipitate16 variantspestilence16 variantssketchbook16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list