vaccine

/vækˈsin/

//vækˈsin// adj

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

"vaccine" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“vaccine” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,188 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#7,188
frequency rank, English
7
letters
8
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of, pertaining to, caused by, or characteristic of cowpox.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

vaccine vs vaccinate
78% similar

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

Key facts for vaccine
PropertyValue
Headwordvaccine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/vækˈsin/
Letters7
Frequency rank#7,188
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “vaccine” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for vaccine is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /vækˈsin/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,188 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for vaccine, with forms such as "avccine", "vaccien", and "vaccinne". 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, "vaccinate", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Latin vaccīnus (“of or derived from a cow”), from vacca (“cow (female cattle)”) + -īnus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Sense 1 refers to the early use of the cowpox virus as a vaccination against smallpox: … The correct English form is vaccine, spelled V-A-C-C-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of, pertaining to, caused by, or characteristic of cowpox.
  2. 2
    Of or pertaining to cowpox as a source of material for vaccination against smallpox; also, of or pertaining to such material used for vaccination.
  3. 3
    Of, pertaining to, or derived from cattle.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin vaccīnus (“of or derived from a cow”), from vacca (“cow (female cattle)”) + -īnus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Sense 1 refers to the early use of the cowpox virus as a vaccination against smallpox: see New Latin variolae vaccīnae (“cowpox”, plural, literally “infectious diseases of cattle causing pustules”), coined by the British physician and scientist Edward Jenner (1749–1823).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: avccine,vaccien,vaccinne,vaccnie,vacicne,vacine,vcacine,vvaccine

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

avccine2vaccien2vaccinne1vaccnie2vacicne2vacine1vcacine2vvaccine1
Edit distance from "vaccine"

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 "vaccine"?
"vaccine" is spelled V-A-C-C-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /vækˈsin/.
What does "vaccine" mean?
As an adjective, "vaccine" means: Of, pertaining to, caused by, or characteristic of cowpox.
What words are commonly confused with "vaccine"?
"vaccine" is commonly confused with "vaccinate". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "vaccine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "vaccine" is /vækˈsin/. 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 "vaccine"?
Learned borrowing from Latin vaccīnus (“of or derived from a cow”), from vacca (“cow (female cattle)”) + -īnus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Sense 1 refers to the early use of the cowpox virus as a vaccination against ... 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.

Using “vaccine”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is V-A-C-C-I-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /vækˈsin/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “vaccinate” - see the side-by-side comparison. vaccine vs vaccinate
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list