references
/ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹən.sɪz/
"references" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“references” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,524 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #3,524
- frequency rank, English
- 10
- letters
- 15
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - plural of reference
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 | references |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹən.sɪz/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #3,524 |
| Misspellings tracked | 15 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “references” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for references is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹən.sɪz/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,524 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "plural of reference".
Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for references, with forms such as "erferences", "reefrences", and "refeernces". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "reverence", "reference", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct English form is references, spelled R-E-F-E-R-E-N-C-E-S.
Definition
- 1plural of reference
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: erferences,reefrences,refeernces,referecnes,referencces,referencess,referencse,referenecs,referennces,referneces,referrences,refferences,refreences,rfeerences,rreferences
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of references - 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.
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
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Using “references”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is R-E-F-E-R-E-N-C-E-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹən.sɪz/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “reverence” - see the side-by-side comparison. references vs reverence
- 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.