unlocking

noun

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

"unlocking" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“unlocking” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #20,530. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,530
frequency rank, English
1,433
“U” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - gerund of unlock: the act by which something is unlocked.

Corpus desk

Index EN-unlocking · unlocking · English

unlocking · rank #20,530 · 14 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #20,530
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,433
  • PHOTO-FINISH UNISON

Nearest frequency peer: UNISON (-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 “unlocking”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “unlocking” 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).

unlocking vs unloading
78% similar

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

Key facts for unlocking
PropertyValue
Headwordunlocking
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Frequency rank#20,530
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “unlocking”

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).unlockinglands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “UNISON” (#20,529), “unprepared” (#20,531), “undead” (#20,528). Among 1,433 “U” headwords, “unlocking” is #20,530. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around unlocking, anoun. Corpus frequency is #20,530 among 1,433 “U” headwords. Dominant gloss: "gerund of unlock: the act by which something is unlocked.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for unlocking, with forms such as "nulocking", "ulnocking", and "unlcoking". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "unloading", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From unlock + -ing. The correct English form is unlocking, spelled U-N-L-O-C-K-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    gerund of unlock: the act by which something is unlocked.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. She had heard him, more than once, lock something up in one of the rooms—come out, and go into another room—wait there a few minutes—then return to the first room, with his keys in hand—and sharply turn the locks, and turn them again. […] [I]t was just as probable that these comings and goings, these lockings and unlockings, might be attributable to the e…

Etymology

From unlock + -ing.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • nulocking
  • ulnocking
  • unlcoking
  • unllocking
  • unloccking
  • unlocikng
  • unlockign
  • unlockingg
  • unlockinng
  • unlockking
  • unlocknig
  • unlokcing
  • unnlocking
  • unolcking

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

nulocking2ulnocking2unlcoking2unllocking1unloccking1unlocikng2unlockign2unlockingg1
Edit distance from "unlocking"

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 "unlocking"?
"unlocking" is spelled U-N-L-O-C-K-I-N-G.
What does "unlocking" mean?
As a noun, "unlocking" means: gerund of unlock: the act by which something is unlocked.
What words are commonly confused with "unlocking"?
"unlocking" is commonly confused with "unloading". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "unlocking"?
From unlock + -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 "unlocking", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

vanishing#20,538trembling#20,521venerable#20,539visualize#20,540

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

youngster14 variantsadvisable14 variantsassortment14 variantsbandwagon14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list