winch
/wɪnt͡ʃ/
"winch" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“winch” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #27,701 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #27,701
- frequency rank, English
- 5
- letters
- 8
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A machine consisting of a drum on an axle, a friction brake or ratchet and pawl, and a crank handle or prime mover (often an electric or hydraulic motor), with or without gearing, to give increased...
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 | winch |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /wɪnt͡ʃ/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #27,701 |
| Misspellings tracked | 8 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “winch” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for winch is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /wɪnt͡ʃ/. Corpus data places it at rank #27,701 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 5 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 winch, with forms such as "iwnch", "wicnh", and "wincch". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "with", "wish", "wind", 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 wynche, from Old English winċe, from Proto-Germanic *winkijǭ, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European *weng- (“to bow, bend, arch, curve”), whence also wink. The correct English form is winch, spelled W-I-N-C-H.
Definition
- 1A machine consisting of a drum on an axle, a friction brake or ratchet and pawl, and a crank handle or prime mover (often an electric or hydraulic motor), with or without gearing, to give increased mechanical advantage when hoisting or hauling on a rope or cable.
- 2A hoisting device used for loading or unloading cargo, or for pulling in lines.
- 3A wince (machine used in dyeing or steeping cloth).
- 4A kick, as of an animal, from impatience or uneasiness.
- 5A witch.
Etymology
From Middle English wynche, from Old English winċe, from Proto-Germanic *winkijǭ, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European *weng- (“to bow, bend, arch, curve”), whence also wink.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: iwnch,wicnh,wincch,winchh,winhc,winnch,wnich,wwinch
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of winch - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "winch"?
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Using “winch”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is W-I-N-C-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /wɪnt͡ʃ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “with” - see the side-by-side comparison. winch vs with
- 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.