aniseed

/ˈæ.nɪ.sid/

//ˈæ.nɪ.sid// noun

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

The verdict

“aniseed” is uncommon English (frequency #86,011 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#86,011
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The seed-like fruit of the anise, used in baking and in the flavouring of liqueurs such as ouzo.

Corpus desk

Index EN-aniseed · aniseed · English

aniseed · rank #86,011 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #86,011
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH amparo

Nearest frequency peer: amparo (-2 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 “aniseed”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for aniseed
PropertyValue
Headwordaniseed
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈæ.nɪ.sid/
Letters7
Frequency rank#86,011
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “aniseed” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).aniseedfalls 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: “amparo” (#86,009), “antediluvian” (#86,013), “amitriptyline” (#86,008). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “aniseed” is #86,011. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

aniseed is uncommon English at frequency #86,011 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈæ.nɪ.sid/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The seed-like fruit of the anise, used in baking and in the flavouring of liqueurs such as ouzo.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for aniseed, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English anece seed, aneys seede, annys sede, equivalent to anise + seed. The correct English form is aniseed, spelled A-N-I-S-E-E-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    The seed-like fruit of the anise, used in baking and in the flavouring of liqueurs such as ouzo.

Etymology

From Middle English anece seed, aneys seede, annys sede, equivalent to anise + seed.

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 "aniseed"?
"aniseed" is spelled A-N-I-S-E-E-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈæ.nɪ.sid/.
What does "aniseed" mean?
As a noun, "aniseed" means: The seed-like fruit of the anise, used in baking and in the flavouring of liqueurs such as ouzo.
How do you pronounce "aniseed"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "aniseed" is /ˈæ.nɪ.sid/. 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 "aniseed"?
From Middle English anece seed, aneys seede, annys sede, equivalent to anise + seed. 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 "aniseed", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list