autotroph
/ˈɔːtə(ʊ)tɹəʊf/
"autotroph" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“autotroph” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any organism that can synthesize its food from inorganic substances, using heat or light as a source of energy.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | autotroph |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈɔːtə(ʊ)tɹəʊf/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “autotroph” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
autotroph is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɔːtə(ʊ)tɹəʊf/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any organism that can synthesize its food from inorganic substances, using heat or light as a source of energy.".
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for autotroph, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: From auto- (from Ancient Greek αὐτο- (auto-, “self-”)) + -troph (from Ancient Greek τροφή (trophḗ, “nourishment”)). The correct English form is autotroph, spelled A-U-T-O-T-R-O-P-H.
Definition
- 1Any organism that can synthesize its food from inorganic substances, using heat or light as a source of energy.
Etymology
From auto- (from Ancient Greek αὐτο- (auto-, “self-”)) + -troph (from Ancient Greek τροφή (trophḗ, “nourishment”)).
Synonyms
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “autotroph”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-U-T-O-T-R-O-P-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈɔːtə(ʊ)tɹəʊf/ (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.