shrinking

/ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ/

//ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ// verb

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

"shrinking" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“shrinking” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,345. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,345
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

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

Corpus desk

Index EN-shrinking · shrinking · English

shrinking · rank #16,345 · 15 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,345
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH servicing

Nearest frequency peer: servicing (-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 “shrinking”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “shrinking” 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).

shrinking vs sinking
78% similar
shrinking vs striking
78% similar
shrinking vs stinking
78% similar

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

Key facts for shrinking
PropertyValue
Headwordshrinking
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ/
Letters9
Frequency rank#16,345
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “shrinking”

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).shrinkinglands 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 “servicing” (#16,344), “simulate” (#16,346), “sectional” (#16,343). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “shrinking” is #16,345. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around shrinking (IPA /ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #16,345 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of shrink".

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for shrinking, with forms such as "hsrinking", "shhrinking", and "shirnking". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 9 confusable-pair relationships, "sinking", "striking", "stinking", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From shrink + -ing. The correct English form is shrinking, spelled S-H-R-I-N-K-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of shrink

Etymology

From shrink + -ing.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hsrinking
  • shhrinking
  • shirnking
  • shrikning
  • shrinikng
  • shrinkign
  • shrinkingg
  • shrinkinng
  • shrinkking
  • shrinknig
  • shrinnking
  • shrniking
  • shrrinking
  • srhinking
  • sshrinking

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

hsrinking2shhrinking1shirnking2shrikning2shrinikng2shrinkign2shrinkingg1shrinkinng1
Edit distance from "shrinking"

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 "shrinking"?
"shrinking" is spelled S-H-R-I-N-K-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ/.
What does "shrinking" mean?
As a verb, "shrinking" means: present participle and gerund of shrink
What words are commonly confused with "shrinking"?
"shrinking" is commonly confused with "sinking", "striking", "stinking". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "shrinking"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shrinking" is /ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ/. 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 "shrinking"?
From shrink + -ing. 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 "shrinking", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

servicing#16,344sectional#16,343repayment#16,325timetable#16,368

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

somebody's15 variantsRockefeller15 variantsrestrained15 variantsinvariably15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list