angstrom

/ˈæŋstɹəm/

//ˈæŋstɹəm// noun

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

The verdict

“angstrom” is uncommon English (frequency #97,787 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#97,787
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A unit of length equal to 10⁻¹⁰ meters (that is, one ten-billionth of a meter), approximately the size of an atom, and denoted by the symbol Å, used especially to measure the wavelength of electrom...

Corpus desk

Index EN-angstrom · angstrom · English

angstrom · rank #97,787 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #97,787
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH angioedema

Nearest frequency peer: angioedema (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “angstrom”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “angstrom” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for angstrom
PropertyValue
Headwordangstrom
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæŋstɹəm/
Letters8
Frequency rank#97,787
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “angstrom” in English

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).angstromfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “angioedema” (#97,786), “Angelino” (#97,785), “anet” (#97,784). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “angstrom” is #97,787. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

angstrom is uncommon English at frequency #97,787 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈæŋstɹəm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A unit of length equal to 10⁻¹⁰ meters (that is, one ten-billionth of a meter), approximately the size of an atom, and denoted by the symbol Å, used especially to measure the wavelength of electrom...".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for angstrom, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Swedish ångström, named after Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström. The correct English form is angstrom, spelled A-N-G-S-T-R-O-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    A unit of length equal to 10⁻¹⁰ meters (that is, one ten-billionth of a meter), approximately the size of an atom, and denoted by the symbol Å, used especially to measure the wavelength of electromagnetic radiation or distances between atoms.

Etymology

Borrowed from Swedish ångström, named after Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström.

Synonyms

Åangstrom unitAU

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

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "angstrom"?
"angstrom" is spelled A-N-G-S-T-R-O-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæŋstɹəm/.
What does "angstrom" mean?
As a noun, "angstrom" means: A unit of length equal to 10⁻¹⁰ meters (that is, one ten-billionth of a meter), approximately the size of an atom, and denoted by the symbol Å, used especially to measure the wavelength of electrom...
How do you pronounce "angstrom"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "angstrom" is /ˈæŋstɹəm/. 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 "angstrom"?
Borrowed from Swedish ångström, named after Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström. 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 "angstrom", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list