absinthe

/ˈæb.sɪnθ/

//ˈæb.sɪnθ// noun

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

"absinthe" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“absinthe” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #41,972. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#41,972
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The herb absinthium Artemisia absinthium (grande wormwood); essence of wormwood.

Corpus desk

Index EN-absinthe · absinthe · English

absinthe · rank #41,972 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #41,972
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH aberrant

Nearest frequency peer: aberrant (-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 “absinthe”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “absinthe” 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).

absinthe vs absentee
75% similar

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

Key facts for absinthe
PropertyValue
Headwordabsinthe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæb.sɪnθ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#41,972
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “absinthe”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).absinthelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “aberrant” (#41,971), “acetaminophen” (#41,975), “adamantly” (#41,976). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “absinthe” is #41,972. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around absinthe (IPA /ˈæb.sɪnθ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #41,972 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for absinthe, with forms such as "abbsinthe", "abisnthe", and "absinhte". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "absentee", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: * (wormwood; figuratively bitterness, sorrow): From Middle English absinthe. * (liquor): From Modern French absinthe. Both from Middle French absinthe, from Latin absinthium, from Ancient Greek ἀψίνθιον (apsínthion, “wormwood”). Doublet of absinthium. The correct English form is absinthe, spelled A-B-S-I-N-T-H-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The herb absinthium Artemisia absinthium (grande wormwood); essence of wormwood.
  2. 2
    Bitterness; sorrow.
  3. 3
    A distilled, highly alcoholic, anise-flavored liquor originally made from grande wormwood, anise, and other herbs.
  4. 4
    A moderate yellow green.
  5. 5
    A moderate yellow green. absinthe green:
  6. 6
    Sagebrush.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Let us go out and drink to the very good health of Monsieur Tarzan in some of old Plancon’s unparalleled absinth; not forgetting that the Count de Coude is one of the best swordsmen in Paris, and by far the best shot in all France.
  2. Absinthe ads like to trade on artists like Van Gogh and Toulouse-Lautrec, as if the history of the green fairy began in the Pigalle neighborhood of 1870s Paris, but wormwood-infused drinks have been around for thousands of years.

Etymology

* (wormwood; figuratively bitterness, sorrow): From Middle English absinthe. * (liquor): From Modern French absinthe. Both from Middle French absinthe, from Latin absinthium, from Ancient Greek ἀψίνθιον (apsínthion, “wormwood”). Doublet of absinthium.

This word in other languages

ajenjo(Español)armoise(Français)Wermut(Deutsch)absinto(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • abbsinthe
  • abisnthe
  • absinhte
  • absinnthe
  • absinteh
  • absinthhe
  • absintthe
  • absitnhe
  • absnithe
  • abssinthe
  • asbinthe
  • basinthe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of absinthe - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

abbsinthe1abisnthe2absinhte2absinnthe1absinteh2absinthhe1absintthe1absitnhe2
Edit distance from "absinthe"

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 "absinthe"?
"absinthe" is spelled A-B-S-I-N-T-H-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæb.sɪnθ/.
What does "absinthe" mean?
As a noun, "absinthe" means: The herb absinthium Artemisia absinthium (grande wormwood); essence of wormwood.
What words are commonly confused with "absinthe"?
"absinthe" is commonly confused with "absentee". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "absinthe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "absinthe" is /ˈæb.sɪnθ/. 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 "absinthe"?
* (wormwood; figuratively bitterness, sorrow): From Middle English absinthe. * (liquor): From Modern French absinthe. Both from Middle French absinthe, from Latin absinthium, from Ancient Greek ἀψίνθιον (apsínthion, “wormwood”). Doublet of absinth... 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 "absinthe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

aberrant#41,971airframe#41,987wringing#41,957vilified#41,946

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

affinities12 variantsValverde12 variantsassembler12 variantsuppermost12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list