signal
/ˈsɪɡnəl/
"signal" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“signal” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,406 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #2,406
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 15
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A sequence of states representing an encoded message in a communication channel.
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 | signal |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈsɪɡnəl/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #2,406 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 15 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “signal” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for signal is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsɪɡnəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,406 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 11 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for signal, with forms such as "isgnal", "sginal", and "siganl". 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 15 confusable-pair relationships, "Sina", "signs", "Sinai", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French segnal, seignal or Medieval Latin signāle; noun use of the neuter of Late Latin signālis, from Latin signum; verb use from 1805, as a shortened from signalize (1650s). The correct English form is signal, spelled S-I-G-N-A-L.
Definition
- 1A sequence of states representing an encoded message in a communication channel.
- 2Any variation of a quantity or change in an entity over time that conveys information upon detection.
- 3A sign made to give notice of some occurrence, command, or danger, or to indicate the start of a concerted action.
- 4An on-off light, semaphore, or other device used to give an indication to another person.
- 5An on-off light, semaphore, or other device used to give an indication to another person.
- 6An electromagnetic action, normally a voltage that is a function of time, that conveys the information of the radio or TV program or of communication with another party.
- 7An action, change or process done to convey information and thus reduce uncertainty.
- 8A token; an indication; a foreshadowing; a sign.
- 9Useful information, as opposed to noise.
- 10A simple interprocess communication used to notify a process or thread of an occurrence.
- 11A signalling interaction between cells
Etymology
From Old French segnal, seignal or Medieval Latin signāle; noun use of the neuter of Late Latin signālis, from Latin signum; verb use from 1805, as a shortened from signalize (1650s).
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: isgnal,sginal,siganl,siggnal,signall,signla,signnal,singal,ssignal
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of signal - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “signal”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-I-G-N-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈsɪɡnəl/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Sina” - see the side-by-side comparison. signal vs Sina
- 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.