alphabetic

/ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk/

//ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk// adj

"alphabetic" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“alphabetic” is an uncommon English word, ranked #53,996 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#53,996
frequency rank, English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of or relating to an alphabet, especially the characters A to Z, both uppercase and lowercase.

Key facts for alphabetic
PropertyValue
Headwordalphabetic
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk/
Letters10
Frequency rank#53,996
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “alphabetic” 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). alphabetic 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 alphabetic is 10 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk/. Corpus data places it at rank #53,996 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Of or relating to an alphabet, especially the characters A to Z, both uppercase and lowercase.".

alphabetic doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Partly from French alphabétique and partly from its etymon Latin alphabēticus. By surface analysis, alphabet + -ic. The correct English form is alphabetic, spelled A-L-P-H-A-B-E-T-I-C.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of or relating to an alphabet, especially the characters A to Z, both uppercase and lowercase.

Etymology

Partly from French alphabétique and partly from its etymon Latin alphabēticus. By surface analysis, alphabet + -ic.

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 "alphabetic"?
"alphabetic" is spelled A-L-P-H-A-B-E-T-I-C. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk/.
What does "alphabetic" mean?
As an adjective, "alphabetic" means: Of or relating to an alphabet, especially the characters A to Z, both uppercase and lowercase.
How do you pronounce "alphabetic"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alphabetic" is /ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk/. 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 "alphabetic"?
Partly from French alphabétique and partly from its etymon Latin alphabēticus. By surface analysis, alphabet + -ic. 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 “alphabetic”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is A-L-P-H-A-B-E-T-I-C - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˌæl.fəˈbɛt.ɪk/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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