bioluminescence
/ˌbaɪ̯oʊ̯ˌluməˈnɛsəns/
"bioluminescence" is a 15-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“bioluminescence” is uncommon English (frequency #81,168 among 31,241 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #81,168
- frequency rank, English
- 31,241
- “B” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The emission of light by a living organism (such as a firefly).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | bioluminescence |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌbaɪ̯oʊ̯ˌluməˈnɛsəns/ |
| Letters | 15 |
| Frequency rank | #81,168 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “bioluminescence” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
bioluminescence is uncommon English at frequency #81,168 among 31,241 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌbaɪ̯oʊ̯ˌluməˈnɛsəns/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The emission of light by a living organism (such as a firefly).".
No generated misspelling entries exist for bioluminescence in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From bio- + luminescence. The correct English form is bioluminescence, spelled B-I-O-L-U-M-I-N-E-S-C-E-N-C-E.
Definition
- 1The emission of light by a living organism (such as a firefly).
Etymology
From bio- + luminescence.
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 "bioluminescence"?
What does "bioluminescence" mean?
How do you pronounce "bioluminescence"?
What is the origin of the word "bioluminescence"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “bioluminescence”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-I-O-L-U-M-I-N-E-S-C-E-N-C-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌbaɪ̯oʊ̯ˌluməˈnɛsəns/ (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
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.