sixty

/ˈsɪksti/

//ˈsɪksti// num

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

The verdict

“sixty” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,978 in English word frequency and used as a numeral.

#7,978
frequency rank, English
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
17
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The cardinal number occurring after fifty-nine and before sixty-one, represented in Roman numerals as LX and in Arabic numerals as 60.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

sixty vs six
60% similar
sixty vs sit
60% similar
sixty vs site
60% similar

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

Key facts for sixty
PropertyValue
Headwordsixty
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNumeral
IPA/ˈsɪksti/
Letters5
Frequency rank#7,978
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs17
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sixty” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). sixty lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for sixty is 5 letters long, classified as a numeral, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsɪksti/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,978 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "The cardinal number occurring after fifty-nine and before sixty-one, represented in Roman numerals as LX and in Arabic numerals as 60.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for sixty, with forms such as "isxty", "sitxy", and "sixtty". 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 17 confusable-pair relationships, "six", "sit", "site", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Middle English sixty, sexty, Old English sixtiġ, from Proto-Germanic *sehs tigiwiz (“sixty”), equivalent to six + -ty. Cognate with Scots sexty, saxty (“sixty”), Saterland Frisian säkstich (“sixty”), West Frisian sechstich (“sixty”), Dutch ze… The correct English form is sixty, spelled S-I-X-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The cardinal number occurring after fifty-nine and before sixty-one, represented in Roman numerals as LX and in Arabic numerals as 60.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English sixty, sexty, Old English sixtiġ, from Proto-Germanic *sehs tigiwiz (“sixty”), equivalent to six + -ty. Cognate with Scots sexty, saxty (“sixty”), Saterland Frisian säkstich (“sixty”), West Frisian sechstich (“sixty”), Dutch zestig (“sixty”), German Low German sesstig (“sixty”), German sechzig (“sixty”), Swedish sextio (“sixty”), Norwegian seksti (“sixty”), Icelandic sextíu (“sixty”). Compare also Sanskrit षष्टि (ṣaṣṭi).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: isxty,sitxy,sixtty,sixtyy,sixxty,sixyt,ssixty,sxity

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

isxty2sitxy2sixtty1sixtyy1sixxty1sixyt2ssixty1sxity2
Edit distance from "sixty"

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 "sixty"?
"sixty" is spelled S-I-X-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɪksti/.
What does "sixty" mean?
As a numeral, "sixty" means: The cardinal number occurring after fifty-nine and before sixty-one, represented in Roman numerals as LX and in Arabic numerals as 60.
What words are commonly confused with "sixty"?
"sixty" is commonly confused with "six", "sit", "site". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sixty"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sixty" is /ˈsɪksti/. 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 "sixty"?
Inherited from Middle English sixty, sexty, Old English sixtiġ, from Proto-Germanic *sehs tigiwiz (“sixty”), equivalent to six + -ty. Cognate with Scots sexty, saxty (“sixty”), Saterland Frisian säkstich (“sixty”), West Frisian sechstich (“sixty”)... 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.

Using “sixty”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-I-X-T-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈsɪksti/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “six” - see the side-by-side comparison. sixty vs six
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list