recurrent
/ɹɪˈkʌɹənt/
"recurrent" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“recurrent” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #21,330 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #21,330
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Recurring; happening time after time.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | recurrent |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ɹɪˈkʌɹənt/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #21,330 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “recurrent” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for recurrent is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɹɪˈkʌɹənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #21,330 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for recurrent, with forms such as "ercurrent", "rceurrent", and "reccurrent". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "recurring", "resurrect", "resurgent", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin recurrens, present participle of recurrere. Morphologically recur + -ent. The correct English form is recurrent, spelled R-E-C-U-R-R-E-N-T.
Definition
- 1Recurring; happening time after time.
- 2Non-transient.
- 3Running back toward its origin.
- 4Turned back toward the base.
Etymology
From Latin recurrens, present participle of recurrere. Morphologically recur + -ent.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ercurrent,rceurrent,reccurrent,recrurent,recurent,recurernt,recurrennt,recurrentt,recurretn,recurrnet,reucrrent,rrecurrent
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of recurrent - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "recurrent"?
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Using “recurrent”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is R-E-C-U-R-R-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɹɪˈkʌɹənt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “recurring” - see the side-by-side comparison. recurrent vs recurring
- 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.