spelling

/ˈspɛlɪŋ/

//ˈspɛlɪŋ// verb

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

"spelling" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“spelling” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #7,181. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#7,181
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
19
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of spell

Corpus desk

Index EN-spelling · spelling · English

spelling · rank #7,181 · 11 variants · 19 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #7,181
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 19 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH slice

Nearest frequency peer: slice (-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 “spelling”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “spelling” 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).

spelling vs spewing
75% similar
spelling vs spending
75% similar
spelling vs stealing
75% similar

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

Key facts for spelling
PropertyValue
Headwordspelling
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈspɛlɪŋ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#7,181
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs19
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “spelling”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “slice” (#7,180), “Spurs” (#7,182), “silicon” (#7,179). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “spelling” is #7,181. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around spelling (IPA /ˈspɛlɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #7,181 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of spell".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for spelling, with forms such as "pselling", "seplling", and "spelilng". 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 19 confusable-pair relationships, "spewing", "spending", "stealing", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: 1400s, from spell (verb) + -ing. The correct English form is spelling, spelled S-P-E-L-L-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of spell

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. [p 88] A persuasive theory about the authority of the quarto or Folio texts might shed light on how Shakespeare actually spelt these names in a particular manuscript, but, since Shakespeare seemed capable of spelling his own name differently on different occasions, how reliable a guide would such evidence be?

Etymology

1400s, from spell (verb) + -ing.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • pselling
  • seplling
  • spelilng
  • speling
  • spellign
  • spellingg
  • spellinng
  • spellnig
  • spleling
  • sppelling
  • sspelling

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

pselling2seplling2spelilng2speling1spellign2spellingg1spellinng1spellnig2
Edit distance from "spelling"

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 "spelling"?
"spelling" is spelled S-P-E-L-L-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈspɛlɪŋ/.
What does "spelling" mean?
As a verb, "spelling" means: present participle and gerund of spell
What words are commonly confused with "spelling"?
"spelling" is commonly confused with "spewing", "spending", "stealing". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "spelling"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spelling" is /ˈspɛlɪŋ/. 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 "spelling"?
1400s, from spell (verb) + -ing. 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 "spelling", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

survivor#7,185punished#7,173Adelaide#7,194Brussels#7,201

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

screwed11 variantsproving11 variantswonders11 variantscluster11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list