cadmium

/ˈkædmiəm/

//ˈkædmiəm// noun

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

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

The verdict

“cadmium” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #34,813. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#34,813
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A chemical element (symbol Cd) with an atomic number of 48: a soft, silvery-white metal.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cadmium · cadmium · English

cadmium · rank #34,813 · 10 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #34,813
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH buttered

Nearest frequency peer: buttered (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “cadmium”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “cadmium” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

cadmium vs calcium
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for cadmium
PropertyValue
Headwordcadmium
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkædmiəm/
Letters7
Frequency rank#34,813
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “cadmium”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).cadmiumlands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “buttered” (#34,812), “Callaway” (#34,814), “burley” (#34,811). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cadmium” is #34,813. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around cadmium (IPA /ˈkædmiəm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #34,813 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for cadmium, with forms such as "acdmium", "caddmium", and "cadimum". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "calcium", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: 1817, from Ancient Greek Καδμεία (Kadmeía, “calamine”), a cadmium-bearing mixture of minerals, which was named after the king Κάδμος (Kádmos, “Cadmus”). The correct English form is cadmium, spelled C-A-D-M-I-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    A chemical element (symbol Cd) with an atomic number of 48: a soft, silvery-white metal.
  2. 2
    A single atom of this element.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. CSPI says the Trump Administration could take steps to protect consumers from each of these chemicals and support FDA’s broader post-market assessment efforts. It could ensure that FDA sets health-protective limits on heavy metals, like lead, arsenic, and cadmium, in foods consumed by children.

Etymology

1817, from Ancient Greek Καδμεία (Kadmeía, “calamine”), a cadmium-bearing mixture of minerals, which was named after the king Κάδμος (Kádmos, “Cadmus”).

This word in other languages

cadmio(Español)cadmium(Français)Kadmium(Deutsch)cádmio(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • acdmium
  • caddmium
  • cadimum
  • cadmimu
  • cadmiumm
  • cadmmium
  • cadmuim
  • camdium
  • ccadmium
  • cdamium

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of cadmium - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

acdmium2caddmium1cadimum2cadmimu2cadmiumm1cadmmium1cadmuim2camdium2
Edit distance from "cadmium"

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 "cadmium"?
"cadmium" is spelled C-A-D-M-I-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkædmiəm/.
What does "cadmium" mean?
As a noun, "cadmium" means: A chemical element (symbol Cd) with an atomic number of 48: a soft, silvery-white metal.
What words are commonly confused with "cadmium"?
"cadmium" is commonly confused with "calcium". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "cadmium"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cadmium" is /ˈkædmiəm/. 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 "cadmium"?
1817, from Ancient Greek Καδμεία (Kadmeía, “calamine”), a cadmium-bearing mixture of minerals, which was named after the king Κάδμος (Kádmos, “Cadmus”). 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 "cadmium", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

candida#34,816buckles#34,808brevity#34,806Chicano#34,822

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

buttered10 variantsCallaway10 variantschimera10 variantsbenzene10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list