shining
/ˈʃaɪnɪŋ/
"shining" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“shining” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,397 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #7,397
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 11
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Emitting light.
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 | shining |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈʃaɪnɪŋ/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #7,397 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “shining” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for shining is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈʃaɪnɪŋ/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,397 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for shining, with forms such as "hsining", "shhining", and "shiinng". 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, "skiing", "siding", "sizing", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: By surface analysis, shine + -ing. The correct English form is shining, spelled S-H-I-N-I-N-G.
Definition
- 1Emitting light.
- 2Reflecting light.
- 3Having a high polish or sheen.
- 4Having exceptional merit.
Etymology
By surface analysis, shine + -ing.
Synonyms
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: hsining,shhining,shiinng,shinign,shiningg,shininng,shinnig,shinning,shniing,sihning,sshining
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of shining - 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 "shining"?
What does "shining" mean?
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Using “shining”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-H-I-N-I-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈʃaɪnɪŋ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “skiing” - see the side-by-side comparison. shining vs skiing
- 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.