refusing

/ɹɪˈfjuːzɪŋ/

//ɹɪˈfjuːzɪŋ// verb

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

"refusing" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“refusing” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,273. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,273
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of refuse

Corpus desk

Index EN-refusing · refusing · English

refusing · rank #7,273 · 12 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,273
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH rehabilitation

Nearest frequency peer: rehabilitation (+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 “refusing”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “refusing” 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).

refusing vs rousing
75% similar
refusing vs reusing
88% similar
refusing vs reducing
75% similar

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

Key facts for refusing
PropertyValue
Headwordrefusing
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ɹɪˈfjuːzɪŋ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#7,273
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “refusing”

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).refusinglands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “rehabilitation” (#7,274), “Reid” (#7,275), “quarterly” (#7,270). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “refusing” is #7,273. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around refusing (IPA /ɹɪˈfjuːzɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #7,273 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of refuse".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for refusing, with forms such as "erfusing", "reffusing", and "refsuing". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "rousing", "reusing", "reducing", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct English form is refusing, spelled R-E-F-U-S-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of refuse

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • erfusing
  • reffusing
  • refsuing
  • refuisng
  • refusign
  • refusingg
  • refusinng
  • refusnig
  • refussing
  • reufsing
  • rfeusing
  • rrefusing

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

erfusing2reffusing1refsuing2refuisng2refusign2refusingg1refusinng1refusnig2
Edit distance from "refusing"

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 "refusing"?
"refusing" is spelled R-E-F-U-S-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹɪˈfjuːzɪŋ/.
What does "refusing" mean?
As a verb, "refusing" means: present participle and gerund of refuse
What words are commonly confused with "refusing"?
"refusing" is commonly confused with "rousing", "reusing", "reducing". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "refusing"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "refusing" is /ɹɪˈfjuːzɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "refusing" come from?
"refusing" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 "refusing", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Reynolds#7,278outbreak#7,257Troubles#7,298acoustic#7,308

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

negotiate12 variantstriggered12 variantsfounding12 variantsdoctrine12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list