thank

/ˈθæŋk/

//ˈθæŋk// noun

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

The verdict

“thank” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #317. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#317
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - singular of thanks (“an expression of appreciation or gratitude; grateful feelings or thoughts; favour, goodwill, graciousness”)

Corpus desk

Index EN-thank · thank · English

thank · rank #317 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #317
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH shit

Nearest frequency peer: shit (-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 “thank”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “thank” 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).

thank vs that
60% similar
thank vs then
60% similar
thank vs thin
60% similar

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

Key facts for thank
PropertyValue
Headwordthank
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈθæŋk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#317
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “thank”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).thanklands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “shit” (#316), “children” (#318), “season” (#315). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “thank” is #317. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around thank (IPA /ˈθæŋk/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #317 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Dominant gloss: "singular of thanks (“an expression of appreciation or gratitude; grateful feelings or thoughts; favour, goodwill, graciousness”)".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for thank, with forms such as "htank", "tahnk", and "thakn". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "that", "then", "thin", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English thank (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; attractiveness; commendation, praise; God’s grace; goodwill; merit, reward; mind, thought”), from Old English þanc (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; favour, grace; mind, tho… The correct English form is thank, spelled T-H-A-N-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    singular of thanks (“an expression of appreciation or gratitude; grateful feelings or thoughts; favour, goodwill, graciousness”)

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. If ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same.
  2. What great thank, then, if any man, reputed wise and constant, will neither do, nor permit others under his charge to do, that which he approves not, especially in matter of sin?

Etymology

From Middle English thank (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; attractiveness; commendation, praise; God’s grace; goodwill; merit, reward; mind, thought”), from Old English þanc (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; favour, grace; mind, thought; pleasure, satisfaction”), from Proto-Germanic *þankaz (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; mind, thought; remembrance”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *teng- (“to perceive; to think”). Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian Tonk (“thanks”), West Frisian tanke (“thanks”), Cimbrian dånke (“thanks”), Dutch dank (“thanks”), German Dank (“thanks”), Yiddish דאַנק (dank, “thanks”), Danish tak (“thanks”), Elfdalian tokk (“thanks”), Faroese takk, tøkk (“thanks”), Icelandic takk, þökk (“thanks”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk takk (“thanks”), Swedish tack (“thanks”), Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌲𐌺𐍃 (þagks, “thanks”), Vandalic *þank- (“thanks”); also Latin tongeō (“to know”). For the think — thank relation, compare typologically Russian призна́тельный (priznátelʹnyj) (< знать (znatʹ).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • htank
  • tahnk
  • thakn
  • thankk
  • thannk
  • thhank
  • thnak
  • tthank

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

htank2tahnk2thakn2thankk1thannk1thhank1thnak2tthank1
Edit distance from "thank"

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 "thank"?
"thank" is spelled T-H-A-N-K. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈθæŋk/.
What does "thank" mean?
As a noun, "thank" means: singular of thanks (“an expression of appreciation or gratitude; grateful feelings or thoughts; favour, goodwill, graciousness”)
What words are commonly confused with "thank"?
"thank" is commonly confused with "that", "then", "thin". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "thank"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "thank" is /ˈθæŋk/. 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 "thank"?
From Middle English thank (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; attractiveness; commendation, praise; God’s grace; goodwill; merit, reward; mind, thought”), from Old English þanc (“gratitude; expression of gratitude, thanks; favour, grace;... 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 "thank", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list