gen

[ˈxẽn]

/[ˈxẽn]/ noun

The verdict

“gen” is a regularly-used Spanish word, ranked #8,961 in Spanish word frequency and used as a noun.

#8,961
frequency rank, Spanish
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Unidad física y funcional del material hereditario que determina un carácter del individuo y que se trasmite de generación en generación. Desde el punto de vista molecular, un gen es una secuencia ...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

gen vs go
33% similar
gen vs gr
33% similar
gen vs gu
33% similar

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

Key facts for gen
PropertyValue
Headwordgen
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈxẽn]
Letters3
Frequency rank#8,961
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “gen” sits in Spanish 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). gen 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 Spanish entry for gen is 3 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈxẽn]. Corpus data places it at rank #8,961 in overall Spanish word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Unidad física y funcional del material hereditario que determina un carácter del individuo y que se trasmite de generación en generación. Desde el punto de vista molecular, un gen es una secuencia ...".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for gen, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "go", "gr", "gu", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct Spanish form is gen, spelled G-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Unidad física y funcional del material hereditario que determina un carácter del individuo y que se trasmite de generación en generación. Desde el punto de vista molecular, un gen es una secuencia lineal de nucleótidos en la molécula de ADN, que contiene la información necesaria para la síntesis de una macromolécula con función celular específica.

This word in other languages

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 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "gen"?
"gen" is spelled G-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈxẽn].
What does "gen" mean?
As a noun, "gen" means: Unidad física y funcional del material hereditario que determina un carácter del individuo y que se trasmite de generación en generación. Desde el punto de vista molecular, un gen es una secuencia ...
What words are commonly confused with "gen"?
"gen" is commonly confused with "go", "gr", "gu". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gen" is [ˈxẽn]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "gen" come from?
"gen" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 “gen”

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

  • The one correct Spanish spelling is G-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈxẽn] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “go” - see the side-by-side comparison. gen vs go
  • Browse more Spanish words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Spanish 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