twelve

/twɛlv/

//twɛlv// num

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

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

The verdict

“twelve” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #3,990. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#3,990
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
9
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The cardinal number occurring after eleven and before thirteen, represented in Arabic numerals as 12 and in Roman numerals as XII.

Corpus desk

Index EN-twelve · twelve · English

twelve · rank #3,990 · 9 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #3,990
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH theater

Nearest frequency peer: theater (-2 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 “twelve”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “twelve” 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
Key facts for twelve
PropertyValue
Headwordtwelve
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNumeral
IPA/twɛlv/
Letters6
Frequency rank#3,990
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “twelve”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).twelvelands 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 “theater” (#3,988), “virgin” (#3,992), “terrorist” (#3,987). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “twelve” is #3,990. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around twelve (IPA /twɛlv/), anumeral. Corpus frequency is #3,990 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The cardinal number occurring after eleven and before thirteen, represented in Arabic numerals as 12 and in Roman numerals as XII.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for twelve, with forms such as "tewlve", "ttwelve", and "twelev". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English twelve, from Old English twelf (“twelve”), from Proto-Germanic *twalif, an old compound of *twa- (“two”) and *-lif (“left over”) (i.e., two left over after having already counted to ten), from Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“leave, remain”)… The correct English form is twelve, spelled T-W-E-L-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The cardinal number occurring after eleven and before thirteen, represented in Arabic numerals as 12 and in Roman numerals as XII.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. There are twelve months in a year.
  2. Hopper points out that duodecads have been prominent in every ancient civilization and cites as examples twelve spokes in the wheel of the Hindu Rta, the twelve gates of hell where Egyptian Ra must spend the twelve hours of night, the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve labors of Hercules, [...]

Etymology

From Middle English twelve, from Old English twelf (“twelve”), from Proto-Germanic *twalif, an old compound of *twa- (“two”) and *-lif (“left over”) (i.e., two left over after having already counted to ten), from Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“leave, remain”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian tweelf, tweelif, tweelich (“twelve”), West Frisian tolve (“twelve”), Dutch twaalf (“twelve”), German Low German twalf, twalv (“twelve”), German zwölf (“twelve”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian tolv (“twelve”), Icelandic tólf (“twelve”).

Synonyms

twelveteen

This word in other languages

doce(Español)douze(Français)zwölf(Deutsch)doze(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • tewlve
  • ttwelve
  • twelev
  • twellve
  • twelvve
  • twevle
  • twleve
  • twwelve
  • wtelve

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

tewlve2ttwelve1twelev2twellve1twelvve1twevle2twleve2twwelve1
Edit distance from "twelve"

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 "twelve"?
"twelve" is spelled T-W-E-L-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /twɛlv/.
What does "twelve" mean?
As a numeral, "twelve" means: The cardinal number occurring after eleven and before thirteen, represented in Arabic numerals as 12 and in Roman numerals as XII.
What are common misspellings of "twelve"?
Common misspellings include "tewlve", "ttwelve", "twelev", "twellve", "twelvve". The correct spelling is "twelve".
How do you pronounce "twelve"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "twelve" is /twɛlv/. 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 "twelve"?
From Middle English twelve, from Old English twelf (“twelve”), from Proto-Germanic *twalif, an old compound of *twa- (“two”) and *-lif (“left over”) (i.e., two left over after having already counted to ten), from Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“leave... 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 "twelve", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

virgin#3,992voices#3,993tennis#3,986wishes#3,994

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

theater9 variantsranked9 variantspulling9 variantsoutcome9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list