sixteen

/ˈsɪks.tiːn/

//ˈsɪks.tiːn// num

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

"sixteen" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sixteen” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,743. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,743
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The cardinal number occurring after fifteen and before seventeen, represented in Arabic numerals as 16 and in Roman numerals as XVI.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sixteen · sixteen · English

sixteen · rank #7,743 · 10 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,743
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sigh

Nearest frequency peer: sigh (-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 “sixteen”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “sixteen” 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).

sixteen vs steen
71% similar
sixteen vs sixties
71% similar
sixteen vs sixteenth
78% similar

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

Key facts for sixteen
PropertyValue
Headwordsixteen
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNumeral
IPA/ˈsɪks.tiːn/
Letters7
Frequency rank#7,743
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “sixteen”

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).sixteenlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “sigh” (#7,742), “sovereign” (#7,744), “Shane” (#7,741). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sixteen” is #7,743. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around sixteen (IPA /ˈsɪks.tiːn/), anumeral. Corpus frequency is #7,743 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The cardinal number occurring after fifteen and before seventeen, represented in Arabic numerals as 16 and in Roman numerals as XVI.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for sixteen, with forms such as "isxteen", "sitxeen", and "sixeten". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "steen", "sixties", "sixteenth", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English sextene, sixtene, from Old English sixtīene, from Proto-Germanic *sehstehun. Cognate with West Frisian sechstjin, Dutch zestien, German sechzehn, Danish seksten. Equivalent to six + -teen. The correct English form is sixteen, spelled S-I-X-T-E-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The cardinal number occurring after fifteen and before seventeen, represented in Arabic numerals as 16 and in Roman numerals as XVI.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Venters began to count them—one—two—three—four—on up to sixteen.
  2. They'd spent one evening together sixteen months ago, and Falk was acutely aware that he'd probably airbrushed and edited at least some of it without meaning to.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English sextene, sixtene, from Old English sixtīene, from Proto-Germanic *sehstehun. Cognate with West Frisian sechstjin, Dutch zestien, German sechzehn, Danish seksten. Equivalent to six + -teen.

This word in other languages

seize(Français)sechzehn(Deutsch)dezasseis(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • isxteen
  • sitxeen
  • sixeten
  • sixteenn
  • sixten
  • sixtene
  • sixtteen
  • sixxteen
  • ssixteen
  • sxiteen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

isxteen2sitxeen2sixeten2sixteenn1sixten1sixtene2sixtteen1sixxteen1
Edit distance from "sixteen"

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 "sixteen"?
"sixteen" is spelled S-I-X-T-E-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɪks.tiːn/.
What does "sixteen" mean?
As a numeral, "sixteen" means: The cardinal number occurring after fifteen and before seventeen, represented in Arabic numerals as 16 and in Roman numerals as XVI.
What words are commonly confused with "sixteen"?
"sixteen" is commonly confused with "steen", "sixties", "sixteenth". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sixteen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sixteen" is /ˈsɪks.tiːn/. 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 "sixteen"?
Inherited from Middle English sextene, sixtene, from Old English sixtīene, from Proto-Germanic *sehstehun. Cognate with West Frisian sechstjin, Dutch zestien, German sechzehn, Danish seksten. Equivalent to six + -teen. 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 "sixteen", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

secular#7,739rushing#7,736replies#7,732tracked#7,755

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

adviser10 variantsanatomy10 variantsbreasts10 variantsconsist10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list