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size

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

4 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "size", 4-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "size" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "size" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

size is aEnglishnoun. It means: The dimensions or magnitude of a thing; how big something is. Pronounced /saɪz/. It ranks #778 in English word frequency. Often confused with sue and SME.

Key facts for size
PropertyValue
Headwordsize
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/saɪz/
Letters4
Frequency rank#778
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of size in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for size is 4 letters long, classified as anoun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /saɪz/. Corpus data places it at rank #778 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language.Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 5 documented wrong-spelling variants for size, with forms such as "isze", "siez", and "sizze". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "sue", "SME", "SSE", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Attested since the 14th century, originally meant a “law or regulation that determines the amount to be paid”, from Middle English syse, sise (“regulation, control, limit”), from Old French cise, sise, aphetism of assise (“assize”), from the verb asseoir (“… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is size, spelled S-I-Z-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    The dimensions or magnitude of a thing; how big something is.
  2. 2
    A specific set of dimensions for a manufactured article, especially clothing.
  3. 3
    The number of edges in a graph.
  4. 4
    Degree of rank, ability, character, etc.
  5. 5
    An instrument consisting of a number of perforated gauges fastened together at one end by a rivet, used for measuring the size of pearls
  6. 6
    Ellipsis of chili size (“hamburger served with chili con carne”).
  7. 7
    An assize.
  8. 8
    A regulation, piece of ordinance.
  9. 9
    A regulation determining the amount of money paid in fees, taxes etc.
  10. 10
    A fixed standard for the magnitude, quality, quantity etc. of goods, especially food and drink.

Etymology

Attested since the 14th century, originally meant a “law or regulation that determines the amount to be paid”, from Middle English syse, sise (“regulation, control, limit”), from Old French cise, sise, aphetism of assise (“assize”), from the verb asseoir (“to sit down”), from Latin assidēre, composed of ad- (“to, towards, at”) + sedeō (“sit; settle down”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sed-. Displaced native Old English miċelnes (literally “bigness”).

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: isze,siez,sizze,ssize,szie

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for size

Misspelling Variants of "size"

isze4siez4sizze5ssize5szie4
Misspelling Variants of "size"

Frequency rank: #778 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "size"?
"size" is spelled S-I-Z-E. The IPA pronunciation is /saɪz/.
What does "size" mean?
As a noun, "size" means: The dimensions or magnitude of a thing; how big something is.
What words are commonly confused with "size"?
"size" is commonly confused with "sue", "SME", "SSE". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "size"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "size" is /saɪz/. 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 "size"?
Attested since the 14th century, originally meant a “law or regulation that determines the amount to be paid”, from Middle English syse, sise (“regulation, control, limit”), from Old French cise, sise, aphetism of assise (“assize”), from the verb ... 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter S in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.