witness

/ˈwɪtnɪs/

//ˈwɪtnɪs// noun

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

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

The verdict

“witness” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,925 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#2,925
frequency rank, English
7
letters
9
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Attestation of a fact or event; testimony.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

witness vs witnesses
78% similar
witness vs witnessed
78% similar
witness vs wines
71% similar

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

Key facts for witness
PropertyValue
Headwordwitness
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈwɪtnɪs/
Letters7
Frequency rank#2,925
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “witness” 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). witness 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 witness is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈwɪtnɪs/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,925 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 witness, with forms such as "iwtness", "wintess", and "witenss". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "witnesses", "witnessed", "wines", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English witnesse, from Old English ġewitnes, equivalent to wit + -ness. Cognate with Middle Dutch wetenisse (“witness, testimony”), Old High German gewiznessi (“testimony”), Icelandic vitni (“witness”). The correct English form is witness, spelled W-I-T-N-E-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Attestation of a fact or event; testimony.
  2. 2
    One who sees or has personal knowledge of something.
  3. 3
    Someone called to give evidence in a court.
  4. 4
    One who is called upon to witness an event or action, such as a wedding or the signing of a document.
  5. 5
    Something that serves as evidence; a sign or token.
  6. 6
    A particular version of a text (seen as providing testimony of archetype or other earlier version)
  7. 7
    An additional database server instance used in failover scenarios to decide whether the mirror should take over.

Etymology

From Middle English witnesse, from Old English ġewitnes, equivalent to wit + -ness. Cognate with Middle Dutch wetenisse (“witness, testimony”), Old High German gewiznessi (“testimony”), Icelandic vitni (“witness”).

This word in other languages

testimonio(Español)témoignage(Français)Zeugnis(Deutsch)testemunho(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: iwtness,wintess,witenss,witnes,witnness,witnses,wittness,wtiness,wwitness

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

iwtness2wintess2witenss2witnes1witnness1witnses2wittness1wtiness2
Edit distance from "witness"

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 "witness"?
"witness" is spelled W-I-T-N-E-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈwɪtnɪs/.
What does "witness" mean?
As a noun, "witness" means: Attestation of a fact or event; testimony.
What words are commonly confused with "witness"?
"witness" is commonly confused with "witnesses", "witnessed", "wines". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "witness"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "witness" is /ˈwɪtnɪs/. 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 "witness"?
From Middle English witnesse, from Old English ġewitnes, equivalent to wit + -ness. Cognate with Middle Dutch wetenisse (“witness, testimony”), Old High German gewiznessi (“testimony”), Icelandic vitni (“witness”). 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 “witness”

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

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