apothegm
/ˈæ.pə.θɛm/
"apothegm" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“apothegm” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A short, witty, instructive saying; an aphorism or maxim.
Corpus desk
Index EN-apothegm · apothegm · English
apothegm · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "A" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | apothegm |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈæ.pə.θɛm/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “apothegm” in English
Rare enough to double-check
apothegm is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈæ.pə.θɛm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A short, witty, instructive saying; an aphorism or maxim.".
apothegm doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: From French apophthegme or Medieval Latin apothegma, from Ancient Greek ἀπόφθεγμα (apóphthegma), from ἀποφθέγγομαι (apophthéngomai, “speak out”). The correct English form is apothegm, spelled A-P-O-T-H-E-G-M.
Definition
- 1A short, witty, instructive saying; an aphorism or maxim.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how apothegm appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Every glaſs of wine, or bit almoſt, that I committed to my mouth, ſhe uſhered thither with ſome Apothegm or other: the whole ſeries, indeed, of her diſcourſe, was compoſed of nothing but reaſon or wit, which made me admire her; which ſhe eaſily underſtood, I perceived by her ſmiles, when ſhe obſerved me gaping, as it were, when ſhe ſpoke, as if I would ha…
The account which he [James Ferguson] himself gives of these observations is exceedingly interesting, and strikingly brings out the ingenuity of his mind, and his determination to allow no difficulties of circumstances to stand in his way. [...] Thus we are reminded of the apothegm that where there's a will there's a way—an apothegm which has found illust…
Etymology
From French apophthegme or Medieval Latin apothegma, from Ancient Greek ἀπόφθεγμα (apóphthegma), from ἀποφθέγγομαι (apophthéngomai, “speak out”).
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.