seven

/ˈsɛvən/

//ˈsɛvən// num

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

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

The verdict

“seven” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #884. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#884
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A numerical value equal to 7; the number following six and preceding eight. This many dots: (•••••••). Describing a group or set with seven elements.

Corpus desk

Index EN-seven · seven · English

seven · rank #884 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #884
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH seem

Nearest frequency peer: seem (-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 “seven”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “seven” 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).

seven vs Shen
40% similar
seven vs Sven
60% similar
seven vs sewn
60% similar

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

Key facts for seven
PropertyValue
Headwordseven
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNumeral
IPA/ˈsɛvən/
Letters5
Frequency rank#884
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “seven”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).sevenlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “seem” (#883), “sign” (#885), “race” (#882). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “seven” is #884. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around seven (IPA /ˈsɛvən/), anumeral. Corpus frequency is #884 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A numerical value equal to 7; the number following six and preceding eight. This many dots: (•••••••). Describing a group or set with seven elements.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for seven, with forms such as "esven", "seevn", and "sevenn". 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, "Shen", "Sven", "sewn", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *septḿ̥ From Middle English seven, from Old English seofon (“seven”), from Proto-West Germanic *sebun (“seven”), from Proto-Germanic *sebun (“seven”), from Proto-Indo-European *septḿ̥ (“seven”). Cognate with Scots seiven (“seven”), West Frisian sâ… The correct English form is seven, spelled S-E-V-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A numerical value equal to 7; the number following six and preceding eight. This many dots: (•••••••). Describing a group or set with seven elements.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. 1 Now Iericho was straitly shut vp, because of the children of Israel: none went out, & none came in. 2 And the Lord said vnto Ioshua, See, I haue giuen into thine hand Iericho, and the King thereof, and the mighty men of valour. 3 And ye shall compasse the city, all yee men of warre, and goe round about the city once: thus shalt thou doe sixe dayes. 4 An…
  2. The cabbalism of the number seven is emphasized, for in hell seven judges at each of seven gates take one of these divine laws away from her.

Etymology

PIE word *septḿ̥ From Middle English seven, from Old English seofon (“seven”), from Proto-West Germanic *sebun (“seven”), from Proto-Germanic *sebun (“seven”), from Proto-Indo-European *septḿ̥ (“seven”). Cognate with Scots seiven (“seven”), West Frisian sân (“seven”), Saterland Frisian soogen (“seven”), Low German söven (“seven”), Dutch zeven (“seven”), German sieben (“seven”), Danish syv (“seven”), Norwegian sju (“seven”), Icelandic sjö (“seven”), Latin septem (“seven”), Ancient Greek ἑπτά (heptá, “seven”), Russian семь (semʹ), Sanskrit सप्त (saptá).

This word in other languages

siete(Español)sept(Français)sieben(Deutsch)sete(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • esven
  • seevn
  • sevenn
  • sevne
  • sevven
  • sseven
  • sveen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of seven - 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.

esven2seevn2sevenn1sevne2sevven1sseven1sveen2
Edit distance from "seven"

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 "seven"?
"seven" is spelled S-E-V-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɛvən/.
What does "seven" mean?
As a numeral, "seven" means: A numerical value equal to 7; the number following six and preceding eight. This many dots: (•••••••). Describing a group or set with seven elements.
What words are commonly confused with "seven"?
"seven" is commonly confused with "Shen", "Sven", "sewn". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "seven"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "seven" is /ˈsɛvən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "seven"?
PIE word *septḿ̥ From Middle English seven, from Old English seofon (“seven”), from Proto-West Germanic *sebun (“seven”), from Proto-Germanic *sebun (“seven”), from Proto-Indo-European *septḿ̥ (“seven”). Cognate with Scots seiven (“seven”), West ... 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 "seven", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

staff#888super#889legal#878union#890

Similar misspelling depth

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

began7 variantsbuilt7 variantscareer7 variantsdaily7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list