arthropod

/ˈɑːθɹəpɒd/

//ˈɑːθɹəpɒd// noun

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

"arthropod" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“arthropod” is uncommon English (frequency #64,181 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,181
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An invertebrate animal of the phylum Arthropoda, characterized by a chitinous exoskeleton and multiple jointed appendages.

Corpus desk

Index EN-arthropod · arthropod · English

arthropod · rank #64,181 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,181
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH Aruna

Nearest frequency peer: Aruna (+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 “arthropod”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for arthropod
PropertyValue
Headwordarthropod
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɑːθɹəpɒd/
Letters9
Frequency rank#64,181
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “arthropod” 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).arthropodfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Aruna” (#64,182), “antic” (#64,179), “Andronicus” (#64,178). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “arthropod” is #64,181. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

arthropod is uncommon English at frequency #64,181 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɑːθɹəpɒd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An invertebrate animal of the phylum Arthropoda, characterized by a chitinous exoskeleton and multiple jointed appendages.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for arthropod, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin Arthropoda, from Ancient Greek ἄρθρον (árthron, “joint”) + πούς (poús, “foot”), equivalent to arthro- + -pod. The correct English form is arthropod, spelled A-R-T-H-R-O-P-O-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    An invertebrate animal of the phylum Arthropoda, characterized by a chitinous exoskeleton and multiple jointed appendages.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. In at least one other arthropod, the Stalk-eyed fly, it is the sheer length of the stalks themselves, which can be longer than the animal's body, which make the male attractive to females.
  2. The arthropods of the forest biome can be divided into two ecological groups: the cryptozoic inhabitants of the soil and leaf litter, and the terrestrial and arboreal forms that live in more exposed localities.

Etymology

From New Latin Arthropoda, from Ancient Greek ἄρθρον (árthron, “joint”) + πούς (poús, “foot”), equivalent to arthro- + -pod.

Synonyms

arthropod

This word in other languages

artrópodo(Español)arthropode(Français)Gliederfüßer(Deutsch)

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 "arthropod"?
"arthropod" is spelled A-R-T-H-R-O-P-O-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɑːθɹəpɒd/.
What does "arthropod" mean?
As a noun, "arthropod" means: An invertebrate animal of the phylum Arthropoda, characterized by a chitinous exoskeleton and multiple jointed appendages.
How do you pronounce "arthropod"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "arthropod" is /ˈɑːθɹəpɒd/. 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 "arthropod"?
From New Latin Arthropoda, from Ancient Greek ἄρθρον (árthron, “joint”) + πούς (poús, “foot”), equivalent to arthro- + -pod. 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 "arthropod", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

audiology#64,187backbench#64,194badgering#64,196baptizing#64,198

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list