sketch

/skɛt͡ʃ/

//skɛt͡ʃ// verb

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

"sketch" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sketch” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,738. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,738
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To make a brief, basic drawing.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sketch · sketch · English

sketch · rank #6,738 · 10 variants · 13 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,738
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-MID 13 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sins

Nearest frequency peer: sins (-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 “sketch”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “sketch” 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).

sketch vs speech
67% similar
sketch vs switch
67% similar
sketch vs stitch
67% similar

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

Key facts for sketch
PropertyValue
Headwordsketch
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/skɛt͡ʃ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#6,738
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “sketch”

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).sketchlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “sins” (#6,737), “Singh” (#6,736), “soda” (#6,740). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sketch” is #6,738. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around sketch (IPA /skɛt͡ʃ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #6,738 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for sketch, with forms such as "ksetch", "sektch", and "skecth". 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 13 confusable-pair relationships, "speech", "switch", "stitch", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Dutch schets or German Skizze, from Italian schizzo, from Latin schedium, from Ancient Greek σχέδιος (skhédios, “made suddenly, off-hand”), from σχεδόν (skhedón, “near, nearby”), from ἔχω (ékhō, “to hold”). Compare scheme. The correct English form is sketch, spelled S-K-E-T-C-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    To make a brief, basic drawing.
  2. 2
    To describe briefly and with very few details.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I usually sketch with a pen rather than a pencil.
  2. He sketched the accident, sticking to the facts as they had happened.

Etymology

From Dutch schets or German Skizze, from Italian schizzo, from Latin schedium, from Ancient Greek σχέδιος (skhédios, “made suddenly, off-hand”), from σχεδόν (skhedón, “near, nearby”), from ἔχω (ékhō, “to hold”). Compare scheme.

This word in other languages

esbozar(Español)croquer(Français)skizzieren(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ksetch
  • sektch
  • skecth
  • sketcch
  • sketchh
  • skethc
  • skettch
  • skketch
  • sktech
  • ssketch

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ksetch2sektch2skecth2sketcch1sketchh1skethc2skettch1skketch1
Edit distance from "sketch"

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 "sketch"?
"sketch" is spelled S-K-E-T-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is /skɛt͡ʃ/.
What does "sketch" mean?
As a verb, "sketch" means: To make a brief, basic drawing.
What words are commonly confused with "sketch"?
"sketch" is commonly confused with "speech", "switch", "stitch". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sketch"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sketch" is /skɛt͡ʃ/. 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 "sketch"?
From Dutch schets or German Skizze, from Italian schizzo, from Latin schedium, from Ancient Greek σχέδιος (skhédios, “made suddenly, off-hand”), from σχεδόν (skhedón, “near, nearby”), from ἔχω (ékhō, “to hold”). Compare scheme. 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 "sketch", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

shitty#6,735sunset#6,745Taiwan#6,746trades#6,750

Similar misspelling depth

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

Orlando10 variantsopposing10 variantso'clock10 variantscannabis10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list