unlock
/ʌnˈlɒk/
"unlock" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“unlock” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #8,374 in English word frequency and used as a verb.
- #8,374
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 5
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To undo or open a lock or something locked by, for example, turning a key, or selecting a combination.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | unlock |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ʌnˈlɒk/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #8,374 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 5 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “unlock” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for unlock is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ʌnˈlɒk/. Corpus data places it at rank #8,374 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for unlock, with forms such as "nulock", "ulnock", and "unlcok". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "unpack", "unlucky", "unlocked", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English unloken, unlouken, onlouken, from Old English onlūcan (“to unlock”), equivalent to un- + lock. Cognate with Dutch ontluiken (“to unlock”). The correct English form is unlock, spelled U-N-L-O-C-K.
Definition
- 1To undo or open a lock or something locked by, for example, turning a key, or selecting a combination.
- 2To obtain access to something; to meet the requirements of a security or protection system.
- 3To configure (a mobile phone) so that it is not bound to any particular carrier.
- 4To disclose or reveal previously unknown knowledge or potential.
- 5To be or become unfastened or unrestrained.
- 6To make available.
- 7To undermine something that has control over a situation; to find a way to counter or oppose.
Etymology
From Middle English unloken, unlouken, onlouken, from Old English onlūcan (“to unlock”), equivalent to un- + lock. Cognate with Dutch ontluiken (“to unlock”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: nulock,ulnock,unlcok,unllock,unlocck,unlockk,unlokc,unnlock,unolck
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of unlock - 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.
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
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Using “unlock”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is U-N-L-O-C-K - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ʌnˈlɒk/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “unpack” - see the side-by-side comparison. unlock vs unpack
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.