ronin

noun

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

"ronin" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ronin” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #38,599. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#38,599
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A masterless samurai (who often becomes a mercenary to make ends meet).

Corpus desk

Index EN-ronin · ronin · English

ronin · rank #38,599 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #38,599
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH Rog

Nearest frequency peer: Rog (-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 “ronin”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “ronin” 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).

ronin vs ruin
60% similar
ronin vs Rosie
40% similar
ronin vs rosen
60% similar

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

Key facts for ronin
PropertyValue
Headwordronin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters5
Frequency rank#38,599
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “ronin”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).roninlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Rog” (#38,598), “roofed” (#38,600), “Rockingham” (#38,597). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “ronin” is #38,599. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around ronin, anoun. Corpus frequency is #38,599 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for ronin, with forms such as "ornin", "rnoin", and "roinn". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ruin", "Rosie", "rosen", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Japanese 浪人 (rōnin), in turn from Middle Chinese 浪人 (MC langH nyin, “dissolute, wasteful, unrestrained + person”). The correct English form is ronin, spelled R-O-N-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A masterless samurai (who often becomes a mercenary to make ends meet).
  2. 2
    A student who has failed the entrance examination for the high school or university of their choice: if the student does not wish to take the exam the following year or is unable to, the student becomes a ronin, assuming full responsibility for their own training and survival.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Back at Asano’s home in Ako, his chancellor, Oishi (Tatsuo Ichikawa), rallies the samurai, now known as ronin because they are without a master, in a campaign to avenge Asano and restore his clan’s honor.

Etymology

From Japanese 浪人 (rōnin), in turn from Middle Chinese 浪人 (MC langH nyin, “dissolute, wasteful, unrestrained + person”).

This word in other languages

ronin(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ornin
  • rnoin
  • roinn
  • roninn
  • ronni
  • ronnin
  • rronin

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ornin2rnoin2roinn2roninn1ronni2ronnin1rronin1
Edit distance from "ronin"

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 "ronin"?
"ronin" is spelled R-O-N-I-N.
What does "ronin" mean?
As a noun, "ronin" means: A masterless samurai (who often becomes a mercenary to make ends meet).
What words are commonly confused with "ronin"?
"ronin" is commonly confused with "ruin", "Rosie", "rosen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "ronin"?
From Japanese 浪人 (rōnin), in turn from Middle Chinese 浪人 (MC langH nyin, “dissolute, wasteful, unrestrained + person”). 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 "ronin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Rouen#38,601Salma#38,608Remus#38,589Sousa#38,627

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

quads7 variantsTalib7 variantsPeirce7 variantspatter7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list